You'll think of Me
by Lillei
Summary: A little over three years after the death of James and Lily, Remus decides that there is something missing from his life. Sequal to Farren. FINISHED!
1. Prologue

All right everyone! This is a Sequel to Farren, so if you haven't read it, click on my user name and read it before you   
  
read this one, so it will make more sense. All right, this is what happens after Remus and Farren separate and when they   
  
meet again.   
  
  
  
You'll think of me by Keith Urban  
  
  
  
I woke up this morning around 4am  
  
  
  
With the moon shining bright as headlights on the interstate  
  
  
  
I pulled the covers over my head and tried to catch some sleep  
  
  
  
But thoughts of us kept keeping me awake  
  
  
  
Ever since you found yourself in someone else's arms  
  
  
  
I've been trying my best to get along  
  
  
  
But that's okay there's nothing left to say but  
  
Take your records, take you freedom  
  
  
  
Take your memories, I don't need 'em  
  
  
  
Take your space and take your reasons  
  
  
  
But you'll think of me  
  
  
  
And take your cat and leave my sweater  
  
  
  
'Cause we have nothing left to weather  
  
  
  
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better  
  
  
  
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me  
  
I went out driving trying to clear my head  
  
  
  
I tried to sweep out all the ruins that my emotions left  
  
  
  
I guess I'm feeling just a little tired of this  
  
  
  
And all the baggage that seems to still exist  
  
  
  
It seems the only blessing I have left to my name  
  
  
  
Is not knowing what we could have been  
  
  
  
What we should have been  
  
  
  
So  
  
Take your records, take you freedom  
  
  
  
Take your memories, I don't need 'em  
  
  
  
Take your space and take your reasons  
  
  
  
But you'll think of me  
  
  
  
And take your cat and leave my sweater  
  
  
  
'Cause we have nothing left to weather  
  
  
  
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better  
  
  
  
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me  
  
  
  
Someday I'm gonna run across your mind  
  
  
  
Don't worry, I'll be fine  
  
  
  
I'm gonna be alright  
  
  
  
While you're sleeping with your pride  
  
  
  
Wishing I could hold you tight  
  
  
  
I'll be over you  
  
  
  
And on with my life  
  
  
  
Take your records, take you freedom  
  
  
  
Take your memories, I don't need 'em  
  
  
  
Take your space and take your reasons  
  
  
  
But you'll think of me  
  
  
  
And take your cat and leave my sweater  
  
  
  
'Cause we have nothing left to weather  
  
  
  
In fact I'll feel a whole lot better  
  
  
  
But you'll think of me, you'll think of me  
  
  
  
And you're gonna think of me  
  
  
  
Oh someday baby, someday  
  
Prologue  
  
  
  
Remus J. Lupin lay on a hard, lumpy mattress in New York. Only just a day ago, Farren had been in his   
  
arms, holding onto him tightly, both of them so in love. But the moon was nearly full again, and he needed to get back to   
  
Hogwarts and his own time before he transformed again. Besides, Farren couldn't tell him anymore, least she changed   
  
destiny, and Remus could understand that. They would just have to make the right choice themselves, when it came to   
  
that. Besides, she was leaving for Texas again. But now, here he was, in New York and alone, loveless and tired. The   
  
others lay in beds and on couches scattered around the room, but Remus still felt lonely. It was Farren's fault.   
  
  
  
Farren Valencia Alma was Remus's soul mate. He himself was quite convinced of this fact, though the   
  
feeling did not seem to be entirely mutual. Though Farren said she loved him, said she felt something with him, she   
  
seemed to feel that love couldn't travel through time periods. Perhaps it couldn't, but Remus did not want to think of   
  
that. He felt bitter towards her memory. She had said she would remember him forever. She had said she loved him.   
  
But she had also said that maybe, just maybe, there was someone who she could feel the same way with who she would   
  
get to see everyday. She would never see him again. Pain overtook Remus.   
  
  
  
Farren had been a wonderful person. Her hair was long and friary red, which matched her personality. She   
  
had been so different from normal muggles. She knew about the magical world, for one, and she seemed capable of   
  
breaking through muggle blocking spells, which was odder still. But that wasn't the only reason he loved her. She had   
  
known about his transformations, but yet she still loved him. She had been so intelligent, and seemed so like him it was   
  
frightening. So perfect, yet so pessimistic, at least about love. Remus felt that it was slightly to be expected, considering   
  
her life, but couldn't she believe that his love would hold her for the rest of her life until they met again in death? Why   
  
couldn't she try? James said he was being unreasonable, thinking that his one month love could be enough for a life time,   
  
but Remus was sure he would never love that way again. Bitter thoughts built up in him.   
  
  
  
He scowled under the covers. If she could brush this off simple because of a little thing like twenty years   
  
separated them, then he could do so too! He didn't need her, of course not. Deep inside him, his conscious was shaking   
  
it's head and laughing at him, thinking about how bitter break-up thoughts wouldn't conceal his love for her. But, they   
  
certainly did make him feel better. He knew he still loved her, always would, but that didn't mean he couldn't make   
  
himself feel better now.   
  
Besides, Remus insisted to himself, one day Farren will regret not keeping my love. Then she'll think of me.   
  
Then she'll miss me and I'll be off having the time of my life with someone who has always loved me.   
  
  
  
The very though broke Remus down. He fell into the bed and covered his head with a pillow. How he   
  
missed her! Mean thoughts would only help him so far, and they seemed to have lost their appeal already. How could   
  
God do this to him? How could God give both him and Farren what they had always needed in love, and then snatch   
  
that love away? It wasn't fair. Remus had been through a lot of unfair things in his life, and he had never complained,   
  
instead just taking what came and making the best of it. But he could not live without love! He couldn't. He could try,   
  
but he wouldn't be able to. It was impossible.   
  
Suddenly, a ironic calmness came over him. He didn't understand it, nor did he try to. The serenity was   
  
smooth, almost like a gently rising song, and it seemed to speak to him. He realized what it was saying. He would see   
  
her again. He didn't know when. He didn't know how. But he would see her again. They would embrace, and cry, and   
  
ride off together to be totally in love. Maybe he would take her back with him, or maybe he would stay with her, but he   
  
would see her again. They would be happy. He knew it. Perhaps, she had known this all along. Perhaps, that is why she   
  
had left. So that they could meet again.  
  
'You'll think of me, Farren. We will be together. You'll realize like I realized. You'll think of me.' 


	2. Chapter 1 The Past of Future

WOW! Thanks to all my reviewers, or to people who found this and read Farren for me and reviewed there. I am going to answer a question I received, about how Remus got in New York. I'm really upset with myself for not making this clearer, so I might go back and fix it. 1) Remus is still sixteen; this is a continuation from Farren, it's the PROLOGUE to this story 2) Since he was technically only there for a muggle studies project, the four must travel home in a muggle like fashion, ae; Trains, Planes, and Automobiles (and yes this is after an old movie I love!) So, you see, they only just arrived in New York, and will take a ship from there to Europe, at which time they will take the Hogwarts Express back to Hogwarts.   
  
I have a question for everyone that I would like you to answer when you review. When people post songs at the beginning of a chapter, do you read them? I'm just wondering if I should keep doing this, because I work really hard to find songs that match, but I know how tedious it is to read them.  
  
Disclaimer- you all know the drill! It's not mine; it's the wonderful J.K. Rowling's!  
  
Chapter One; The past of Future  
  
I'm Moving On, Rascal Flats  
  
I've dealt with my ghosts  
  
And I've faced all my demons  
  
Finally content with a past I regret  
  
I've found you find strength in your  
  
Moments of weakness  
  
For once I'm at peace with myself  
  
I've been burdened with blame  
  
Trapped in the past for too long  
  
I'm movin' on  
  
I've lived in this place  
  
And I know all the faces  
  
Each one is different  
  
But they're always the same  
  
They mean me no harm but it's time that I face it  
  
They'll never allow me to change  
  
But I never dreamed home would end up  
  
Where I don't belong  
  
I'm movin' on  
  
I'm movin' on  
  
At last I can see  
  
Life has been patiently waiting for me  
  
And I know there's no guarantees  
  
But, I'm not alone  
  
There comes a time in everyone's life  
  
When all you can see are the years passing by (are the years passing by)  
  
And I have made up my mind  
  
That those days are gone  
  
I sold what I could  
  
And packed what I couldn't  
  
Stopped to fill up on my way out of town  
  
I've loved like I should  
  
But lived like I shouldn't  
  
I had to lose everything to find out  
  
Maybe forgiveness will find me  
  
Somewhere down this road  
  
I'm movin' on  
  
I'm movin' on  
  
I'm movin' on  
  
"Yes, Albus, what do you need?" Twenty-four year old Remus Lupin asked his aged headmaster warily. In fact, Remus knew exactly what Albus Dumbledore needed, for every month he summoned Remus to his office and told him one simple thing. He did it again.   
  
  
  
"I am not so naïve that I think you don't know why I have asked you here, Remus, my boy. But I shall say it again. You are loosing yourself. Every since the death of your dear friends, the betrayal of someone you thought you knew, you have drifted from yourself. You have and are allowing pain and sorrow to rule you life, and in doing so you let the regrets, evil, and the betrayer win! Do you want to do that, Remus, my friend?" Dumbledore's eyes, normally a twinkling blue, looked old and sad as he spoke to Remus. Remus raised his own weary French blue eyes to the headmaster, taking in details in a way he had forgotten to do since that night…that horrible, Halloween night.   
  
  
  
The headmaster certainly looked older, though not really old. His long beard and hair, normally gray streaked with auburn, had developed into a pure white waterfall that would have gleamed in the dark. His sharp blue eyes looked, though sad at Remus's situation, lighter and happier than they had before Voldemort's downfall. He was dressed in lovely light blue robes that twirled interestingly at his feet, which were covered by his purple, high top boots, which he often wore.   
  
  
  
"Albus," Remus started, wondering what he was going to say. "Each night, I am reminded of my regrets, of my losses. I am friendless and loveless, Albus, for I have no one left. It is a hard existence, to not have friends, to not find love. Surely, if I live less as I used to, it is because I am adjusting to my new life?"   
  
  
  
Albus surveyed Remus carefully, sadly.   
  
  
  
"If you believe no one cares for you, no one is your friend, then I have failed you greatly, and for that, Remus, I give you my greatest of apologizes. Forgive an old man for not expressing his love," Albus said softly, his head lowered, his eyes no longer twinkling. Remus blanched.  
  
  
  
"Oh, Albus, I meant not that you are not my friend! It's just that you are much older than me, you have experienced so much more, you're wiser, and I view you as-as a mentor. I simply miss friends whom I have grown up with, friends who share my experienced, who understand my fear and phobias, who understand…who understand me." Remus sat back in his chair, slightly drained from his confessions, ashamed of the guilt he had alit in Dumbledore.   
  
  
  
"I see, Remus…I see. Perhaps- when you were sixteen, was not a prophecy made to James about his future, by my dear friend Cassandra?" Dumbledore asked. Unsure of where he was heading with such talk, Remus nodded, forcing down the sudden tidal wave of emotions that engulfed him at the very mention of the prophesy…of the trip that had ensued because of it…of the woman he had met there.   
  
  
  
"I see…and did not you, along with your friends, all convince me to not only allow you, as a muggle studies project, to go to the future and to travel to America to find the nature of said prophesy?" Dumbledore continued. Remus nodded once again, swallowing hard. A lump had appeared mysteriously in his throat and he forced down another wave of emotions…and memories.   
  
  
  
"You found the girl, did you not? I seem to remember you telling me that she told you, what was it…" Dumbledore asked him, though Remus was sure he knew.  
  
  
  
"She said 'do not trust the rat," he muttered reluctantly.   
  
  
  
"Yes, that was it. Did she also say that the traitor would not be Sirius Black?"   
  
  
  
"She was mistaken, obviously," Remus muttered through gritted teeth. Dumbledore nodded serenely.   
  
  
  
"Or, perhaps, she simply was hinting that it was him, by telling the traitor in question that he was not?" Dumbledore asked Remus pleasantly.   
  
  
  
"Then she is as unreadable as a house elf, and has too much subtlety for her own good!" Remus snapped, conflicting emotions getting the better of him.   
  
  
  
Dumbledore smiled. "Remus…you loved her. You still love her." It was not a question, so it did not require an answer. But Remus spoke anyway.   
  
  
  
"Yes, I love her. Not that it makes much difference. She isn't even born yet, and I shall never see her again! She is a muggle, though an extraordinary one at that, and she knows, or thinks she knows, too much for us to be comfortable around each other. Quit smiling like that! What are you suggesting?" Remus burst out, looking at the calm man in front him.   
  
  
  
"Remus…all time exists at once. It is only the nature of living things to experience it in parts," Dumbledore said placidly.  
  
  
  
Remus scowled and slumped in his chair.   
  
  
  
"Her name, Remus. What was her name?" Dumbledore said easily,  
  
  
  
"Farren," Remus answered moodily, being stubborn on purpose.   
  
  
  
"Her whole name, Remus, my boy. And wipe that pout off your face, you look to be about seven," Dumbledore said teasingly  
  
"Her name was Farren Valencia Alma, for goodness sakes! Where is this going?" Remus said, sitting up more strait in his chair.   
  
  
  
"Ahh, I knew we'd get there," Dumbledore said simply, and he stood to open a cabinet, in which he pulled a huge old book, which was embossed with the title 'A Directory of Pure Blooded Families and their Generations'.   
  
  
  
"Has history in it that hasn't even happened yet!" Dumbledore told Remus distractedly, as he flipped through the book. He seemed to quickly find what he was looking for, as he stopped flipping the pages and laid the book in front of Remus.   
  
  
  
"The Alma Family- pureblood for seventeen generations," Remus read aloud, and then silently began to browse.  
  
  
  
'The Alma family is one of intense complexity. As shown on the family tree at left' Remus's eyes traveled farther down, looking for a more recent instilment.   
  
  
  
'In the midst of Voldemort's rising, Rebecca and Quinton's son, Terris, fell in love and married Lauren Conner-Alma. A pureblood witch herself, the two had attended Hogwarts School together, and were, at the time of their marriage, eighteen. When it became known that the Dark Lord was actively pursuing the family in hopes that they would join their ranks, the family went into hiding under the (1) Fideles Charm, the secret hidden inside Terris himself, as the youngest and highly honored member of the family. The two, using a (2) Anteeo Ambulo, traveled forward in time and then went to America, making it virtually impossible that Voldemort would find them. After using an illusion charm of the highest quality, they managed to convince an entire town that they had been forever living in Colorado, and that they knew them. Unfortunately, Voldemort was somehow notified of such plans and pursued them to the future, much to his own personal risk. Terris and Laura gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on April 8, 1987 (future date), but, knowing that Voldemort was after both them and their offspring, gave the child to an orphanage in Texas, to grow up as a muggle. The two were murdered on December 3 of the same year. Voldemort then returned to his own time, in which no time had passed, and was later defeated on Halloween night, 1981, only weeks after he had arrived back.  
  
(1) Fideles Charm- a highly advanced charm in which a secret is hidden inside a single living soul, and, unless the secret keeper chooses to reveal the secret, the secret cannot be accessed in any way.  
  
(2) Anteeo Ambulo- a device that allows the user to travel forward and backward in time while their time stands still. (A/N- one of my own creations)  
  
  
  
"Wow," Remus whispered. "She's a pure blood witch living as a muggle in the wrong time period…amazing. The simplicity of it…the brilliance," Remus was quite stunned.   
  
  
  
"You say that you have no friends, and no one to love, Remus," Dumbledore said, and Remus jumped. He had all but forgotten where he was.   
  
  
  
"I believe that Farren needs to know about her past, just as much as you did," Dumbledore continued softly, sinking into his chair once more. He gently pulled the book from Remus's hands. "I do not believe that Voldemort is truly gone, for he took many steps to make himself immortal. What he is, I am not sure, for what does such a vindictive spirit look like without a body? However, Voldemort is one to hold grudges; he likes revenge and he loves torture. When he will come back, I do not know, but I fear he is alive and thriving in Farren's time. There is very much possibility of her being in danger, and as she does not know of her past, of her potential to do magic…she very well may die." Remus sucked in his breath quickly.   
  
  
  
"I will trust no one else with this job, Remus. I want you to travel into the future, and find your love. I want you to save her. Bring her back to our world…her world, and we will teach her how to defend herself. She will be a million times safer here…than there. I want you to convince her to come back with you," Dumbledore's seriousness was absolute and complete.  
  
  
  
"You want me to seduce the one I love?" Remus said uncertainly. "You want me to convince her because you know she loves me, and so you know she'll come back to safety? You want me to abuse my love for her by using it to convince her to come back?"  
  
  
  
"You misunderstand me, dear boy. I simply thought that with you, someone she knows and trust, she would be willing to come back with you. After all, she needs love just as fully as you do," Dumbledore answered Remus, his eyes showing naked honesty. Remus nodded.   
  
  
  
"How will I get…there?" Remus inquired.   
  
  
  
"I was thinking you could use a Anteeo Ambulo. Fitting, isn't it, since Farren's family traveled the same way?" He flashed a brilliant smile, his twinkling eyes wondrous. "Once you had arrived in her time, I am hoping my future self will help you on your way, though perhaps you ought to prepare yourself and come back tomorrow."  
  
  
  
Remus was starting to feel terrible excited about the opportunity Dumbledore was laying in front of him. Not only would he get to see Farren once more, it was a great opportunity for him to travel, to learn…to find the real Remus Lupin again.   
  
  
  
"I'll go. What time do you need me here tomorrow?" Remus asked excitably. Dumbledore chuckled appreciatively, and smiled.   
  
  
  
"Be here by noon, though if you arrive earlier, that's fine. Really, Remus, it's summer, you could just show up!" Dumbledore said jokingly, and Remus nodded slightly, reflecting on the near-empty state of the castle. The professors were still here, of course, but many had gone on vacations, and the ones that weren't were enjoying the wonderful weather outside.   
  
  
  
"How many years will I need to go into the future, Albus?" Remus asked ecstatically, leaping from his chair to began pacing the room in his enthusiasm.  
  
  
  
Dumbledore laughed and stood as well, walking to open the door to his office.   
  
  
  
"I believe it will be twenty-nine years Remus, so that she, too, will be twenty-four. I'll see you tomorrow around lunch," he told Remus as he walked him out. Smiling more than he had in nearly three years, Remus practically skipped down hallway, stopping to smile beguilingly at Minerva McGonagall. She raised her thin eyebrows slightly.   
  
  
  
"Hello, Remus. You seem to be in a-er- good mood today," she observed, looking towards Dumbledore to see if Remus had finally unhinged. To her surprise, Dumbledore was sitting at the feet of the gargoyle that guarded his office and looking between three bags of candy, trying to decide which one he would prefer. Too familiar to the headmaster's eccentric ways, she shook her head and turned back to Remus, who was surveying the headmaster with rapt attention.   
  
  
  
"I would go with the lemon drops, Albus, they're excellent. Besides, remember that time you lost your chocolate frog and had to chase it all down the corridors in front of our seventh year class? And I know you have phobias about every flavor beans. Yes, definitely go with those lemon drops," Remus advised the headmaster, who nodded absently and dug into the bag. Minerva rolled her eyes hugely and turned sharply on her heel, muttering something about being surrounded by unbalanced people. Remus grinned widely. Unbalanced…him? Surely not!   
  
  
  
"Crazy in love, perhaps," he murmured happily and set off down the corridor towards the entrance. He emerged into the wonderful weather, noticing how nice it was for the first time in a long time, before setting off down the road to Hogsmeade.   
  
  
  
In Hogsmeade, Remus stopped in The Three Broomsticks to see Rosemerta, knowing it had been a rather long time since he had done so. He entered happily and went to his favorite seat, which was a spinning stool up against the bar. Rosemerta quickly came over.   
  
  
  
"Hello, what can I get for yo- Remus? Remus, is that really you? Well, I'll be, haven't seen you in two or three years!" Rosemerta, a curvy sort of woman in robes of shocking pink said excitably.   
  
  
  
"It's me, Rosie, but I'm leaving soon, you won't see me for a while longer," Remus answered pleasantly.  
  
  
  
"Goodness, where're you going?" Rosemerta said eagerly, coming from around the bar to sit by him.   
  
  
  
"The states," Remus answered vaguely. "Don't know how long our be there for, but I'll be back eventually."  
  
  
  
"I have so much to tell you!" Rosemerta gushed happily. "Daddy finally went into retirement, so I own the place now! And Lucy Ann finally married Bill. They've got themselves a wonderful little boy now, he's two, they call him Joseph!" Remus settled in for one or two Butterbeers, and three years' worth of gossip.   
  
  
  
Four hours later, Remus had escaped from Rosemerta's chatter, visited Honeyduke's, the joke shop, and the grocery store, before going home. Farren, he knew, was going to need some place to stay when she came back, and he was not going to allow her to sleep at the Leaky Cauldron, no matter how nice the rooms were. After unpacking his groceries, he stepped into his office. Two bookshelves and a desk made the room imbalanced, and he quickly situated the bookshelves together and pushed the desk into a corner, leaving a wall and a half for bedroom supplies. He summoned up a twin bed and a wardrobe for Farren's stuff and looked at the room happily. That was when he noticed the state of his house.   
  
  
  
For the past three years, cleaning had not been a particular worry for Remus. Lost in his sorrows and ghosts from the past, he had simply not noticed the gathering dust and the less-than-gleaming floors. He had kept things organized, for he had very little possessions, but he now noticed the musty smell of the office, the dusty desk looking particularly dull next to the gleaming wardrobe he had just conjured up. Gritting his teeth, he immediately got to work.   
  
  
  
After finding a bottle of 'Mrs. Skrower's All Purpose Cleaning Solution', Remus began to scrub ever surface in sight, save the floor. Soon the office gleamed, and, grinned, Remus took his bucket and sponge into his room across the hall. The room in question was rather disappointing, as it held only a bed, his old school trunk, and his briefcase. He scrubbed it vigorously, thinking all the while that once Farren got here, he would most definitely have to decorate his house…THEIR house.   
  
  
  
Soon, the two small bathrooms, the joint living and dining room, and the kitchen were gleaming. Remus rinsed out his bucket and then refilled it with clear water. After pouring a bit more of the cleaning solution in it, he set to work mopping the wood floored house, drying it as he went. Soon, the entire house was clean, smelling of fresh lemon. He breathed in deeply, before deciding to go pack his stuff for his trip to the United States, July 9th, 2011!  
  
  
  
He pulled his briefcase from it spot on the wall, and smiled proudly at the little used suitcase. He had bought it new just before James and Peter's death; he had been so proud to be able to afford something of his own. He had been working in a shady bar at the time, the logic being that people don't hire people for shady bars and expect them to turn up every night each month. His boss hadn't a clue about his problem, which was just great, until Remus had quit. He wondered if he could get that job back, as it had paid fairly well. After all, now he was going to need money!  
  
  
  
Remus pulled open his trunk and pulled out his very few muggle outfits. Every article was folded and placed neatly in his case, save for one shirt and one pair of pants, knowing that he would need muggle clothes for his travels. He then placed a pre-packed personal items bag, everything in it shrunk to travel size.   
  
  
  
'James would be laughing at you right now, Lupin. He'd be saying 'that's so like you to have it pre-packed and miniature, Moony! Um…can you get me one?' Remus thought to himself, chuckling as he did so. It had been along time since he'd been able to think about any of his friends without dangerous emotions rising in him, and he thought this trip would definitely do him good. He opened the bag to check that everything was in there; toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, face wash, and a comb all sat in the bag in an organized fashion. Nodding, Remus put everything back in his case and closed it up, admiring the way the gold letters spelling out his name gleamed in the soft light drifting through the windows. He looked outside dazedly; the sun was sinking softly from the sky, and a blood red glow was cast over his home. The crescent moon was rising lazily in the sky, and, feeling quite content, Remus changed into some pajamas and curled up in bed, his dreams filled with a girl whose hair glowed like the scarlet setting sun.   
  
©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª_©_ª  
  
The next morning, Remus awoke with his stomach growling loudly. Remembering how he had forgotten dinner the night before, Remus crawled from his bed sleepily, stopping to make the bed and to grab his muggle clothes. He went into his bathroom, climbing into the shower sleepily, allowing the cold water to wake him up abruptly. As soon as he was done, he brushed his teeth and hair, before climbing into the odd assortment of clothes.  
  
  
  
A blue button up shirt that matched his eyes, a pair of stiff jeans, and even stiffer boots made up the outfit. He looked at himself in the mirror…did he look muggle? The jeans were uncomfortably tight after his loose robes…were they supposed to fit like that? He squinted at himself, unaccustomed to their confining feel. His stomach gave a loud growl, a reminder that no matter how odd he looked, it needed food. Remus grumbled slightly and set off towards the kitchen, stopping to pull his case from the foot of the bed. Once he had arrived in the clean room, Remus frowned lightly as he searched for something to eat. A bowl of porridge later, Remus was washing the lone dish and replacing it in the cabinets. He then looked around his house, his eyes resting on the clock, as he wondered what to do until it was time for him to meet Dumbledore. 9:00, 9:01, the clock flashed at Remus, and, frowning Remus looked around the room. His eyes landed on the living room, in which a bookshelf held many of his memories of school. Walking into the room, a particular photo album caught his eye. On it, in fancy gold calligraphy, were the words 'Lovebird Moments'. Remus laughed and picked it up, setting on the couch for a good laugh.   
  
  
  
Inside were four messages, each inscribed in one of the Marauder's handwriting, explaining the pictures. Remus, knowing it would hurt, but doing it anyway, read what was wrote.   
  
  
  
In James's writing, 'this is a book of us four and our girls. We've all had one or two different ones, but you'll notice that a few (LILY, uhum, LILY) show up more than others.   
  
  
  
Then Sirius's, and Remus had to master his wolf like impulse to rip the book to shreds. 'I had more than one or two, Prongsie! But Carina is in here most for me…don't tell, but we're engaged. Heck, what am I saying? TELL EVERYONE!'  
  
  
  
The Remus himself, and he looked at it, wondering what exactly he'd said. 'Only one girl that I've ever liked- loved, and she's in here, even if she's out of my life.' Remus grinned slightly. If only his nineteen-year-old self had knew that they would meet again.   
  
  
  
Short Peter's handwriting was thick and long. 'Clarissa's in here, and that's good.' Remus smiled as he remembered Clarissa Clark, who had seemed to be Peter's soul mate. She loved rodents, and was short, timid, and shy. Remus wondered how she was doing; now that- well, now that it all had happened. He then opened the book.   
  
  
  
For the next few hours, Remus entertained himself with the pictures. They had managed to take an extraordinary amount of pictures when they had met Farren, and in most of them she obviously didn't know she was being pictured. Remus flipped to one that made him laugh; he remembered that day. Farren had nasty bruise across one cheek but she seemed to have forgotten about it. The two were on a bus; she twisted in her seat to see him, he leaning over the top of hers to playfully debate about something or another. It didn't matter now. Remus glanced at the clock; it read 11:37. He stood up and left the book open to the same page, resting on the couch, as he apparated to Hogsmeade.   
  
  
  
Once there, he set off on the road for Hogwarts, feeling very happy as he walked down the dirt path, humming some old song. Hogwarts came into view soon, and Remus was pleased to see Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Poppy all resting by the lake. During summer, each looked so different than during the school year that Remus still couldn't completely mask his amazement. Dumbledore…well, Dumbledore was always senile! But McGonagall, she definitely didn't look like the stuffy creature from the classroom. Her hair was hanging in a long ponytail, and she was dressed, to his shock, in a short khaki skirt and a black, muggle, one-piece bathing suit. And Poppy! She was let her own hair down, and was wearing a long pastel colored sundress. It was an interesting sight, to say the very least.   
  
  
  
"Ah, Remus, come join us, won't you?" Dumbledore said grandly as he waved his arm jovially at the emerald green grass and clear lake. Remus smiled and nodded to him, almost skipping to get to him and sit down. Dumbledore grinned at him almost insanely.   
  
  
  
"Remus, my boy, you seem very happy. I see you've brought a suitcase, excellent! Lemon Drop?" Remus looked at him strangely. "You got me strangely attached to these things. They're quite good," Dumbledore said easily. Remus snorted, but extended his hand to Dumbledore for a few. He popped the sweet round candy into his mouth and relished their tangy taste.   
  
  
  
"Do you have it ready, Albus?" Remus asked impatiently through his mouthful of candy, earning a disproving snort from McGonagall. He ignored her, and Albus chuckled merrily, standing up from the grass in an amazingly graceful manner. Remus jumped up too and quickly followed Dumbledore as he strode purposefully across the ground, waving happily to the woman behind him.   
  
  
  
As they arrived in his office, Dumbledore held out two objects that glimmered in the afternoon light. One Remus recognized as an old invisibility cloak and Remus felt his chest tighten slightly at the reminder of his school days. The other was an object that Remus had seen only in books and was wholly anxious to examine.   
  
  
  
The hand size hourglass looked rather like a time turner, though its bright purple sand was magically held in the top of the cone. A knob was pushed into the lower half of the hourglass, and on it was a series of numbers, all indicating the point in time that you were trying to reach. Remus reached for the Anteeo Ambulo and gently let his hand touch the smooth glass. Dumbledore silently extended the objects to him, sensing that he would need a moment of silence.   
  
Remus held the objects to him and looked up at Dumbledore, who smiled at him healingly.   
  
  
  
"Here's a portkey, Remus. Put this on-" he extended the invisibility cloak- "and push the dial in on this Anteeo Ambulo. Once you're in the future- you should be in my office- this portkey will take you to a safe apparition point in New York. You'll be on your own from there, okay?" Dumbledore asked, holding out everything. Remus nodded, and shifted his case so that it was securely under his arm before taking the portkey into one hand, and throwing the cloak over him. In one swift movement, Remus had firmly pressed in on the dial of the Anteeo Ambulo, and he was sucked through time and space.  
  
  
  
All around him, wild green flames dances, tunneling around him in rough flashes. Beneath him, he saw a long white expanse, numbers and letters on it. Remus realized, fast as he was moving, that the numbers were exact dates, times, and that the letter's were all the things that had happened then. The flames danced around him and Remus saw, much to his surprise, that there were other people in the time tunnel. He could see them through the green blazes, blurred and limp, and he wondered to him self he looked like them, lifeless and floating uneasily in the air. Time hurtles past him, and it was then that Remus noticed the noise. Around him, Screams, laughter, shrieks, conversation, and even silence, ripped through the air in the moments of time in which they had happened. Such loud noise-there was so much of it- but really it was so quiet to. Remus focused on the silence; he had never before heard such loud silence, and then, he felt a jolt as he was pitched headfirst into one of the numbers beneath him.   
  
  
  
The white expanse he fell on to was hard like stone, though he passed through it. All around him was a colorless expanse so complete it was frightening. Neither white nor clear (for if it was clear, and there was nothing to see, what would you see?) the color lacking room extended forever, through all time, through all space, through all existing substances. Remus watched as he resided in the space, no longer floating, though not really standing either.   
  
  
  
'I am standing on time,' Remus thought, and the revelation was so startling that he jerked and the precise balance he hadn't realized he had to keep was shattered, and he fell, a long rushing fall, into time once more. Above him, he could now see a white box, just large enough for his feet, which he had fallen off of.   
  
  
  
And that's when the scenes started. Past him flashed the entire history of the world, scenes of every person's life, scenes of every horror, or joy, or achievement. He experienced every life that had ever been, would be, could be, and because he was a caring person, cried and laughed, and was frightened for each and every person or animal as he experienced their life. And when it was over, he was drained, emotional drained, for now he knew how it felt to be virtually anyone, rather in past or future, and he recognized all the bad in the world, and started, much to his own shock, to cry, a whimpering, sniffling, snuffling, shaking cry that echoed through time, through all time.   
  
  
  
'This,' Remus thought to himself, 'is surely the past of future.'  
  
And it was then that he was hurtled through a single dark spot in a sea of no colors, before landing, still covered by the cloak, still gripping his suitcase and the Anteeo Ambulo, in Dumbledore's future office, Dumbledore himself sitting there, talking to a boy that looked suspiciously like James. 


	3. Chapter 2 Rude Alberts

Do you still think that loo is a girl's name?  
  
Do you still wear your hair long and untamed?  
  
Are you still beautiful and unashamed?  
  
Do you still eat your cereal without milk?  
  
Do you still feel soft as silk?  
  
Do you still like to read ancient myths?  
  
Are you still the person I fell in love with?  
  
-a poem from Remus's veiw   
  
Disclaimer- Um, I think you know I'm not J.K. Rowling, and if you don't, I maybe you should go see a therapist. I can suggest a few .   
  
Thanks to my ONE reviewer. Also, thanks for answering my question. Because of 'never be taken alive', I will no longer be putting songs at the beginning of the chapters, just putting blurbs of one or whatever else comes to mind. I am I bit miffed that only one person reviewed. If my story's that bad, why doesn't someone just tell me honestly so I can delete it? Jeez.   
  
Sorry it always takes me so long to update. I lost my inspiration. I did however get some more inspiration for another story, Her Glow. I'd really like it if my readers would read that as well.   
  
Chapter 2; Rude Alberts  
  
Remus willed his eyes not to pop right out of his head when he noticed the James-like boy. Further assessment told him that the boy's jet black hair was thinner and flatter than James's had been, and that his eyes were not James's hazel, nor Harry's green. Remus wondered if, perhaps, this was Harry's son. Smiling at the thought, Remus was surprised when the portkey he was still holding gave an almighty jerk. He felt himself pull forward through space and landed, nearly as second later, in an open room.   
  
"12:08 from Hogwarts' head office," a voice spoke. Remus glanced up at the man, who stood over six feet, and nodded slightly, still feeling very worn from his trip through time.   
  
"Time traveller?" The man, whose nametag read Albert, asked with boredom. He had probably seen many time travellers, Remus realized, working where he was.   
  
"No," Remus said shortly, not wishing to get into the matter.   
  
"Well, either way," the man said huffily, looking as if he had been wishing for some good gossip. "You'll have to go through examination. Leave your luggage with Anne and go through that door."  
  
Remus did as he was told, glancing behind him in time to see Anne pull out the Anteeo Ambulo. She gasped slightly and Remus wished he had possessed the insight take it with him. The old portkey had disappeared.   
  
Remus entered the examination room. Sitting at a desk was a small woman. Her dark hair was pulled back from her face, framing her big almond eyes beautifully. Remus barely noticed.   
  
"A customer!" The woman said, sounding delighted. "It's been such a slow day." Remus smiled at her tiredly, banishing from his minds the sounds of all the screaming pain in the universe, which still echoed. The woman grinned back, though he could see her expert eyes examining him already.   
  
"I'm Dr. Loraine Smith," she told him, and he shook her hand.   
  
"Remus Lupin," he said.   
  
"All right Remus," she said cheerfully. "There's a lot to be done, so we'd better get started. First, I'll need you to fill out these papers explaining the type of trip you took, your travelling experience, parentage, release forms, that sort of thing. Then we'll start the examination." She handed him a package of parchments, which he quickly went through. He realized that she would soon know that he had travelled over time, and wondered how she would react to that. As it turned out, he needn't have worried.   
  
"Ah, a time traveller. You're a rare one, aren't you? You look to be in remarkable good health for someone who's just travelled in such conditions. Many patients who come in here are sick for weeks, or need physiological help. Some-" she lowered her voice, "-some people are so traumatized by the experience that they die in the vortex of time…or get stuck there." Dr. Smith's voice was lowered in horror, but Remus could think only of the fact that Dumbledore had let him go without telling him this interesting bit of news.   
  
On her instruction, Remus pulled off his shirt (A/N don't start drooling) and stepped on the scale. She frowned at his weight, especially after seeing his height. Remus was glad it hadn't asked in the release forms he had filled out if he had any 'moon' problems. Then she gestured to the bed, which he sat down on. After his physical test and fitness examination, Remus was free to go. He smiled at the doctor and quickly walked out.   
  
"Get your luggage," a rude voice said, and Remus turned to see Albert watching him sulkily. He apparently was unreasonably upset that Remus had not wanted to share with him his unique experience. Remus ignored this.   
  
Remus instead said, "Why thank you. With out your help, I would most certainly have walked out of here without the only things I own in this time period." His dry humor was hard to argue with. He then went to pick up his luggage.   
  
"Here's your case, sir." Anne said respectably. Remus liked her immediately. "And you keep this slip of paper that says that it has been approved by the National Time and Space Travelling Agency of America, where your travels, are our pleasure!" Anne rolled her eyes just enough at the last end to convey her thoughts on their logon. "Also, this is a muggle American ID which will allow you to get into many places, and out of many tight spots. The information was gathered from your info packet you filled out and the picture is an magic creation, made to look like a muggle photograph. And all you money has been exchanged for American currency.  
  
"Why thank you," Remus said pleasantly, before turning to go. He walked out the door, pausing to get some informative brochures. After looking at them, he found a public library.   
  
The library in the busy New York area was small and rundown, but Remus knew it would have to do. He examined its brick walls, so like most other walls in the town, before pulling open the glass and metal door and walking in. Two muggle lawmen stood stiffly beyond the doors.   
  
They nodded to him, apparently not finding him threatening. Then Remus walked through an odd machine that seemed to be trying to detect metal. It instead stopped working as soon as Remus and his magical aura got nearby. The men waved him on, one muttering, 'damn machine. Not the first time this year that's happened.' Remus snorted quietly, wondering how many witches and wizards had walked into the library, which was conveniently close to the travel office.  
  
Inside, Remus quickly found an unoccupied librarian and asked her where he might find an atlas. She gave him a nasty look.   
  
"Haven't you ever been in a library before? Or do they not have them in Europe?" She asked sneeringly. It was then that Remus noticed her nametag, which read 'Alberta.' He groaned, but the woman kept rambling.   
  
"I might have been doing something important, and your stupid talk interrupted me!" She said angrily. A ding sounded from the computer she had been sitting obsessively in front of, and she dropped into the seat near it. Remus could see what she was typing by way of the computer.   
  
'Still here,' she wrote, 'some idiot don't know about an atlas.' Though this made no sense to Remus, a flirty and consoling remark soon flooded onto her screen. Alberta, he thought, must have been talking (somehow) with someone on another computer. He sighed and went to find the book himself. Soon, he had found what he was looking for, road maps to Texas, and, more specifically, Austin. He knew all he had to do once he was there was to find the orphanage where Farren had once lived. Hopefully, they'd be able to tell him where she was now. With short and concealed wand-work, he enchanted the map to show him the closest safe apparating spot.   
  
Remus walked out, glancing amusedly at Alberta, who was still typing frantic, shorthanded messages. He smiled and then continued on his way outside. Once there, he looked around for an area that wasn't so crowded to apparate from. He saw an ally (A/N Stupid Remus) that he thought looked private enough, and so he ducked into it. To his surprise, there was a young man there, dressed entirely in black, with a shaved head. He saw Remus and sneered at him. He then held out a baggy and tried to force it into his hand.  
  
"Here, take this. I got what I need." He said, his eyes wide, the whites of them stained yellow. Remus jumped back, escaping into the bright relief of sunshine and crowds. He decided that it was much too busy for anyone to notice if he disappeared, and quickly and swiftly disapparated.   
  
Remus landed in a place so remote he had to wonder if he had mistaken where he was going. But a small, wizened man was limping quickly toward him, his scuttle reminding Remus forcefully of a hermit crab.   
  
"Whata ya want?" The man said irritably. Remus looked at him with taken aback politeness.   
  
"Ah, don't look like that, young'n. Work here, I do. Been quite crowded today, very polite of you to stop in on OUR BUSIEST DAY." The man grumbled. Remus glanced around with raised eyebrows.   
  
"Busiest day? I'd hate to see it deserted," Remus said mildly.   
  
"Wouldn't be deserted if you could see it, now would it young'n?" The man cackled unpleasantly. "I'm Albert Quinn. Don't get your knickers in a twist, looking so offended. Just get out. Go! Shoo!" Remus gave Albert a glance and quickly began to walk away, wondering how far he had to go to find a sane person. Albert snorted and grabbed his sleeve, pulling him towards a portal. Shoving him unpleasantly through it, Remus quickly found himself on the other side, standing in what seemed to be a back field of some kind of muggle shop. Gas station, Remus thought the term was. Not wasting any time, Remus walked into the shop, looking around. A map told him he was in a small town outside of Austin, Pershing.   
  
"Excuse me," he said to the young girl behind the counter. "Is there an orphanage around here?"   
  
"There woman peered at him with scrutiny. He seemed to pass the test. "Yeah, yeah there is. In fact, I live there." Remus was surprised.   
  
"Um, how-" he started. The girl flapped her hands and made little shushing noises.   
  
"I'm only fourteen. But they don't know that. Shut-up," she said, her eyes twinkling, yet slightly frantic. Her name tag read Anya. Remus smiled. It was a pretty name, he thought. A pretty name that he recognized from somewhere. "Usually, I'm at work, school, or my sisters though. I only go back on Tuesdays. I have to be there once a week. It's our agreement." Remus wasn't sure why she was telling him what she was, but something in her voice begged to be listened to. Her amber colored eyes yearned for someone to really understand and Remus couldn't turn that away. Her hungry eyes looked like another's he had once seen. A different color, a different shape, but still, hungry.   
  
"Legally, my sis is old enough to be out on her own. I'm not, and she can't adopt me if she's related to me, something about a conflict of interests, so I just sleep there most of the time. But the inspectors always 'surprise' us on different Tuesdays, so that's the night I sleep there. If sis ever left- well, she would need a really good reason, otherwise."   
  
Customers behind them were starting to get fed up. Anya seemed to snap from a trance, and sheepishly blushed. Red-cheeked, she wrote him out the address for the orphanage, smiled at him, and hastily turned to her customers. Remus stepped outside and looked at the paper.   
  
'Left on Laurel,' he thought, and soon, following the directions, found himself standing in front of a cheery little place that was sandwiched in between a dollar and general store. It looked more like a day care than an orphanage, but it was a nice relief from the brick walls and high fences he'd been imagining.   
  
Walking inside, Remus heard a bell jingle over his head. A woman cam bustling to him, her arms full with two toddlers, one of which that was pulling her hair.   
  
"Visitor hours are from noon to five on Mondays," she said abruptly, turning from him as quickly as she had come.   
  
"I'm not here to visit. I need to speak to the owner of this establishment," Remus said with a frown, not liking the rude way the woman spoke to him.   
  
Her face contorted into a series of strange expressions before finally settling on defiance.   
  
"It's not Tuesday." she informed him. Remus had to stifle a laugh. The woman obviously thought he was an inspector.   
  
"I am quite aware of that. My name is Remus Lupin, I'm here for-" the woman cut him off.   
  
"Albertine Dugs. Follow me…immediately." Albertine…jeeze. What was it with rude Alberts today?   
  
Remus followed Albertine to a back office, which was small, rectangular, and cramped. Two desks and computers, a pair of strait backed chairs, and three phones littered the room, along with millions of unorganised papers. An older couple sat at the desks, one muttering obscenities at the computer, the other speaking in a very frazzled voice on the phone.   
  
"NO, you may not come back and just take away the child you left with us three years ago. It's illegal. You have to fill out some papers first. I DON'T CARE IF YOU'VE CHANGED! You were a druggie, didn't even notify us before you sent him here! Even if you weren't, you still have to be checked out!" The woman said heatedly into the phone.   
  
"Mother," Albertine said stiffly. "Father. There's someone here to see you." the office activity froze. Apparently, Albertine usually was efficient at scaring off people before they got this far. If the trio hadn't looked so scared, Remus would have laughed.   
  
Albertine quickly left while her mother hung up the phone and her father flipped on the monitor.   
  
"Sit down, please." The man said, standing up and offering Remus his chair. Remus gratefully took it; it was no mean feat to walk from the gas station to the orphanage.   
  
"I'm here to talk to you about a girl who used to live here. She'd be about twenty-four now. Her name was-is, as far as I know- Farren Alma." He said.   
  
"Oh lord !" Elderly Mrs. Dugs looked up at the ceiling and quickly moved her hands in the manner of a classic catholic. Remus smiled.   
  
"If it's about how An-" Mr. Dugs started quickly, but Remus cut him off.   
  
"I'm here to see where she lives now. I'm an old friend of her and after- several- years, I've finally come back. Could you tell me where she lives?" Both elders gave a gigantic sigh of relief.   
  
"Farren! Oh Farren, she still comes back and visits us." Mr. Dugs said happily.  
  
"But we aren't really allowed to give out such information." Mrs. Dugs injected. Remus slumped his shoulders. Now what?  
  
"But it's really our judgement, dear," Mr. Dugs said. "I mean, there is a loophole. We've used it before!"  
  
"That dear, was an emergency." Before Remus could fathom what type of emergency he'd need to make up to find out where Farren lived, Mr. Dugs gave a gigantic roll of his eyes.   
  
"Look at him! He obviously knows her. And…" Mr. Dugs said with a sly smirk, "Farren did meet a young man, several years ago. And she came back from that place with a look in her eye just like his!" Remus blushed slightly.   
  
"Oh, fine! Just don't let it get around, hear me?" Mrs. Dugs looked slightly menacing.   
  
"Yes ma'am," both the men said in unison. Laughing, Mr. Dugs began to dig through his papers, looking for something. He soon pulled out a blank sheet of paper and wrote both her work and home address on it for him.  
  
As Remus left the orphanage, he smiled. But travelling through time, apparating, and walking had exhausted him. He wanted to be fresh when he saw Farren. Despite his nearly physical need to once again hold her in his arms, he controlled himself. He searched the streets for a motel, finally finding a small place. The sign on the door said 'Forest Inn.' Remus entered it quickly, eager for a shower.   
  
"Hello, and welcome the Forest Inn." The young man behind the counter said pleasantly.   
  
"Hello," Remus said exhaustedly. "Do you have any vacancies?"   
  
"Are you kidding," the guy laughed long and loud. "There's always vacancies in a town like this. It's too little for to many people to be here. We get some of the people who couldn't get a nice place in Austin, but that's about it. You want a small room, or a suite. That's how empty we are. You can walk in and get a suite." The man cracked up laughing again. Remus chuckled good-naturedly.   
  
"How much is the small room?"  
  
The guy was still laughing. "Forty-two dollars a night, man. That includes cable and a phone." Remus suddenly realized he had no idea how much money he had.   
  
"Uhh, hang on," he said to the guy.   
  
"Yeah, yeah, sure." the guy went back to chuckling.  
  
Remus began to search through his money furiously. There was a lot. A LOT. Remus had never known that his few galleons would take him so far in the muggle. Walking back up to the man at the counter he smiled.   
  
"Got enough, man?" He asked.   
  
"Yeah," Remus said, feeling-for the first time in a long time- like the kid he was. Only 24, he reminded himself. Not 36. This kid couldn't be any younger than he, but he seemed to be enjoying life a lot more. "Yeah," he repeated. "I got plenty. I just don't know how long I'll be staying. Can I just pay when I leave?"  
  
"How do you know you ain't gonna leave without paying?" The kid asked. Remus pulled out forty-five dollars and handed it to the guy.  
  
"For the first night." The guy gapped at him.   
  
"C-cash?" he finally managed to stammer out.   
  
"Yeah," Remus said with a grin. 'Sirius grin," he thought before he could stop himself. The kid grinned widely too.   
  
"Cool man…cool. Here's a key. You're in room 102. Around that corner there."  
  
"Thanks," Remus said and walked to his room. Before he could even attempt to look around, let alone take a shower, he had collapsed on the bed and fallen asleep.   
  
When Remus woke up, it was late that night. Blearily looking about him, he wondered…where was he?   
  
It came flooding back, like a tidal wave of memories. Finding Farren. That's what he was doing. He glanced over at the digital clock on his bedside table. Eight-thirty.   
  
Eight-thirty! Remus leapt from the bed, tangling himself in the blankets. He still had to shower! And put fresh clothes on! And rent a car, and then actually find her! And it was eight-thirty. Remus then did something he didn't do very often. He swore, long and venomously.  
  
Remus stumbled to the shower, pulling of his clothes as he did so. Turning the water on quickly, he was met with a full blast of freezing cold water. Yelping, he turned the nob the other way and succeeded in getting colder water.   
  
"Cold, cold, cold, cold, cold!" Remus yelped as it pelted him. Ignoring it the best he could, he dumped hotel shampoo into his hair and scrubbed it in with on hand, while washing himself with soap using the other. Rinsing himself in the cold water, he jumped out, drying himself with a thin white towel. He then stumbled out of the bathroom and into the main room, pulling on a white shirt and another pair of jeans.   
  
He walked from the room quickly, grabbed Farren's work and home address, and sprinted from the room, locking the door behind him. He was soon at the lobby.   
  
"Whoa, man, where's the fire?" The young man at the desk asked unconcernedly. Remus almost ignored him, but on a sudden whim turned back.   
  
"Where can I find a car rental place?" He asked quickly, his fingers tapping impatiently on the desk. He really wanted to see Farren.   
  
"Down the street, man. You can't miss it." Remus nodded his thanks.   
  
"I owe you one," he yelled as he sprinted out. The guy snorted.   
  
Remus jogged down the street, his eyes fixed on a huge sign, reading 'Albert's pretty good cars.' Remus didn't have time to worry about meeting another rude person. As soon as he had made it, he burst in the front door. A guy looked up irritably. 'Oh no,' Remus mentally groaned.   
  
"Car," the guy said without asking, and stood up from behind the desk. He was tall, over six feet, and burly. Remus followed him without complaint. They walked to a lot.   
  
"Which one?" The guy asked in the same thick tone.   
  
"Um…the-cheapest?" Remus muttered, not really carrying that he had quite a bit of money.   
  
"Saturn," the guy muttered, walking back inside. Remus followed unsurely. Albert dug through his desk, found some papers, and gestured to a dotted line. "Sign." Remus complied.   
  
"$50 for the week," he said, and Remus handed him the money quickly. Albert looked at him suspiciously, but took it and handed him a receipt. He then led him to a small blue Saturn, an older model than the others, it seemed, and handed Remus the keys.   
  
Remus slid inside and uncertainly drove the car from the lot, scared that Albert would be able to sense his juvenile driving skills. Luckily, Albert didn't. Remus couldn't believe who easily the art of driving came back to him, and while he was sitting at a red light, he quickly pulled Farren's addresses from his pocket. Deciding his best bet would be to go to her home, Remus began to look for 1589 Terris Drive. Thirty minutes later, he still hadn't found it, and the clock was blinking a discouraging 9:40. Remus groaned and almost missed seeing the sign, large and glowing, that declared him about to turn down the very road he was looking for.   
  
Terris Drive seemed to be a street filled with small identical rental houses that were filled with college age people. Numerous partiers danced in the lawns and bouncy music blasted from the houses. Remus tried to block out the noise and hoped Farren wasn't somewhere in the crowd. He rolled down his window and waved a teenage guy with long hair over.  
  
"Is this all one party?" He yelled over the noise.   
  
"Yeah, dude!" The guy yelled back. "We all just turned up our type of music and danced in the street. You looking for someone?"  
  
"Farren. Farren Al-" Remus started  
  
"Ah, fire-hair!"   
  
"Yes…" Remus said unsurely.   
  
"Yeah, she's sleeping man!"  
"Through this?"   
  
"Goes on all summer! Sometimes she comes out with her little sis, fourteen, real cute kid, but usually she goes to bed. Works from five-thirty till eight you know. But man, they leave the doors unlocked, we're all friends here! In case one of us ever needs her or something. Cool girl, huh?" Remus just nodded.   
  
"You sure she won't mind if I just walk in? And wake her up?" Remus asked.  
  
"Look man, I do it all the time!" Remus wasn't all together reassured. "Look, man, she's probably not even asleep yet. She comes home and sometimes brings someone with her and talks in the back room. Just walk in, they can't hear the doorbell. And if she's asleep walk out! I got to get back to the party man. It's the third house down." The young man left. With a roll of his eyes, so did Remus, driving to a quiet and dark house. He pulled up into the driveway with minimal difficulty and slipped from the truck.   
  
Feeling extremely odd, he slipped inside, uncertainty seeping through him. The house was dark, a sure sign that he should turn back.   
  
'I'll come back tomorrow,' he thought, but his body thought otherwise and continued walking. 'They might be in the back,' another voice whispered to him. The doors were all open. One showed the room of a teenage girl, wild and crazy with bright colors and big lopsided posters. Another open archway led to a living room, and another open door showed a small but quaint bathroom. Remus approached the last door. It was open as well, showing an orderly room. A trunk sat in the corner, and Remus knew the room was Farren's. He stepped inside. She was asleep, curled up in the bed, blankets pulled all the way to her chin as she lay curved in a ball. He just wanted to look at her, and so he quietly turned on a lamp.   
  
The light fell upon not just her, but another shape. A big and burly shape. A very MALE shape.   
  
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CLIFFY! That was fun, but evil.   
  
-Lillei 


	4. Chapter 3 Like the Phoenix

Love can touch just one time  
  
And last for a life time  
  
Never letting go till we're gone  
  
-exert from the Titanic theme song  
  
Disclaimer; You know I'm not her, so don't even think it. I have one thing to say though; I have issues against killing J.K.'s characters, but I have none against killing my own…you've been forewarned.  
  
Announcement; Now PG-13 for some suggestions in this chapter…nothing too bad.   
  
Chapter 3; Like the Phoenix   
  
Needless to say, Remus had the worst hang over of his life the next morning. He couldn't remember to much about the night after seeing Farren, though he was pretty sure one of his fellow drinkers was crying harder than him, until the bartender had kicked him out the back door and told him he needed to stop making people cry harder than they already were. Remus couldn't quit recall, but he was pretty sure he had passed out then.   
  
Which meant, he suddenly realized, that he was lying in the back of a bar near the dumpster. That would explain the smell. He was frightened to open his eyes, as they were already aching from the dim light his lids let through. But he knew he would have to some time. Seemingly far away, he heard voices arguing.   
  
"NO, I will not go get him now! We have things to discuss. What you did last night was wrong and-" The woman's voice was shrill.   
  
"Let me remind you," A man's rumbling tone said. "That when I hired you it was after you had come in my bar, drunk, crying and trying to hide it! Not many people would hire someone like that! Now go do your job!"  
  
"Excuse me? I was not drunk! I had just been raped, for Dumbledore's sake! And as grateful as I am to you for giving me this job, I could take what you did up with the law! Then we'll see who's out of the job!" There was a moment of silence, a sharp smack, and someone was thrown on the ground next to him.   
  
"Oh," the woman said softly, picking herself off the ground. "Sir, please wake up." Remus tried to tell her he was awake, but his mind was stuck on the fact that she had said 'For Dumbledore's sake.' And the fact that she had been raped. And the fact that she sounded like someone her once knew.   
  
"REMUS?" The woman's voice was sounding eerily familiar now. He wrenched his eyes open, ignoring the blazing sun. It looked like her. It sounded like her. It couldn't be her, though…could it?   
  
"I'm sorry, I must have mistaken you for someone else," the woman quickly said. Remus couldn't take the chance though, in case it was her.   
  
"Farren? Is that you?" He sounded horrible.   
  
"Remus? Is it really-"  
  
"Farren!" Remus couldn't help but interrupt her. Forgetting how hurt he had been the night before, he sat up quickly, a headache rushing to meet him. Embarrassing as it was for his old girlfriend to find him like this, Remus pushed the emotion away and lurched forward, tossing his arms around her. She gripped him back-crying he thought- hugging him until it felt like his arms would fall off.   
  
"What are you doing here?" She finally gasped in his ear. He gently detangled himself from her.   
  
"Here in your time period, here in America, or here behind the bar that you work at, totally hung over, hugging you?" Remus asked sardonically. Farren made a noise somewhere between a laugh and a sob.   
  
"All of them!" She said laughingly.  
  
"I wanted to see you," he whispered softy. She smiled.  
  
"After all this time you came to see me? You're a weird one, Remus."   
  
"That's okay," Remus sighed contentedly. "You want to go somewhere and talk?"   
  
"Oh, Remus, I really have to work, I don't want to get fired! If I loose my job Anya won't be able to stay at my house anymore and I'll-I'll…have to stay in this crappy place working for that son of a bitch if I don't get fired," Farren slowly seemed to realize. Remus knew he looked shocked, but he had never heard Farren curse before. She had, he realized, grown up.  
  
"What's so bad about your boss?"   
  
"What's isn't bad about him?" She angrily snarled. "He's always making a move on me, he loves to remind me that I'm only here because he convinced his father to hire me, often reminds me that it was he who comforted me after…things, and last night he followed me home! After I had a nice conversation with him and showed him out, explaining that I was tired, I wake up the next morning to find him…in my bed!" Farren looked repulsed. Remus couldn't help but pull her into his arms.   
  
"That's why I was here," he muttered. "A friend of yours told me to go on in, that you'd be there, and probably wouldn't be asleep. But when I got in there, I saw you with that…guy and, well…here I am," Remus was rather ashamed to admit this to her, but she looked horrified on his behalf.  
  
"Oh, Remus, I'm sorry. Let's go to the park or something. We need to talk," she said.   
  
"What about your job?" He asked slyly.   
  
"What job?" Farren challenged him. With a grin, Remus stood from the ground and offered her an arm, which she gratefully took. With that, the two of them walked to the park.  
  
Remus had not looked at Farren very well at first, but now he drunk in the sight of her. Her auburn hair was darker red than ever and fell, to his amazement, past her waist. She was still rather short, only five four at tallest, but was also slender and attractive, making up for any awkwardness that the shortness might have enticed. Her face was more slender than he remembered and her hazel eyes seemed larger and brighter. She was almost too skinny, he thought, but didn't question her. Her bartender outfit consisted of a white shirt with red cap sleeves and a red skirt. Remus thought there was nothing more beautiful.   
  
When the two of them reached the park, they sat on a bench. Farren looked almost nervous. It had been, Remus knew, an awfully long time since they'd seen each other.   
  
"You look too thin," she told him, peering up at him. He smiled and resisted the urge to pull her closer.  
  
"So do you," he told her.   
  
"I eat!" She sounded indignant. "I just also have to support my sister, the rental house bill, and the car bill on my paycheck."  
  
"You don't have a sister!" Remus said, confused.   
  
"Oh," Farren looked abashed. "I forgot that you would know that. I'm so used to people here not knowing much about me…though gossip spreads fast."   
  
"It's Anya…you remember her, Remus? I know I told you about her."   
  
"I do remember her. In fact, I've met her, up at the gas station. I knew her name sounded familiar." Farren frowned.  
  
"She told me she turned down that gas station job! I don't like her working at her age." Remus smiled sympathetically.   
  
"She doesn't want to have to leave you because of insignificant funds." He said.  
  
"You sound like you know what you're talking about," she said with a laugh. "But Remus, tell me honestly…why are you here?"   
  
Remus took a deep breath in. "I wanted to see you again. I wanted to see if we could make it work out," Farren paled.   
  
"Now, Remus, don't take this the wrong way, but…youhavetogobackalonebecauseRemusfromthebooksneverhasagirlfriend," Remus stared at her. He wasn't sure exactly what she'd said, but he had gotten the gist. It had something to do with the way she knew things about his future…James's future…poor little Peter's…and the traitor's future too.  
  
"Farren…maybe…you just haven't seen my future with you…or anyone," he added, to soften the blow. Farren looked slightly swayed.   
  
"But we're from different time periods! I would have to go back with you-" Remus knew he looked to hopeful "-and leave Anya, and I just couldn't do that!" Remus felt his heart drop.  
  
"Look, Farren, I know there's things you know that I don't…but there's things I know that you don't. Please come back with me so that you learn. You could be in danger if you don't know…if ever Voldemort comes back." Farren paled further.   
  
"I-in danger?" She stuttered. "I've been in many kinds of danger Remus. I'm sure I would handle it. It's not as if I could protect myself with magic even if I went back with you." Remus snorted. Farren looked at him, light dancing in her eyes.  
  
"I-is there?" She asked. Remus couldn't help it. He knew they weren't in a safe place. He knew that telling her now could ruin everything. He knew that he had wanted to tell her in such a way that she would be convinced to come back with him. But he didn't manage to do that, because before he could stop himself, he had jumped to his feet and was rambling on about her past. He began to choke up when he had to tell her about her parents (she was looking at him so hopefully) and actually cried when he blurted out how lost he would feel if he learned that she died because he couldn't convince her to come back and learn magic. He was pacing in front of the bench as he talked, eyes wide and wild as he recited what he could of the book.   
  
"Farren," he finally gasped. "I know it's been a long time. I know we're different people now, and I know the circumstances are harsh…but I still love you! I want to at least try to save you, at least try to work out our relationship! I'm still in love, okay? I'm still-in love." She was crying.  
  
"Farren?" He whispered. "You're crying. I've nev-never seen you cry." He could remember like it was yesterday Farren telling him that she hadn't cried in so long, that she was afraid she was an unfeeling monster.   
  
"I learned to cry," She whispered back. "When I learned about loosing my only chance at love."  
  
"But Remus," she said, seemingly determined to find a reason why they couldn't be together. "We don't know each other anymore. I mean…I know you heard what I said…about being raped. But you don't even know the story! How can we just climb back into each other's lives after everything that we've missed? I've grown up, seen things. I'm not the same!"  
  
"Farren," Remus said incomprehensively. "I know you're different! But you're not a different person, okay? You're still Farren. I mean, one of my best friends died, another of them was blasted to pieces, and another betrayed us all! I was a wreck before Dumbledore told me about your past, about how he wanted me to come find you, bring you back. And I was only too happy to do so. I've been thinking about it every since I left you the first time. I know people change; I know we've grown up. But I'm still making the effort! Before I knew there was a way I could come to you, I ate once every couple of days, drank only when I had to. Can't you see how good you are for me?" Farren looked stunned.   
  
"Oh Remus…I always knew it would happen. I knew everything-I could have stopped it after all-but I never got it. I never let it in." Farren looked horrified. "I never let myself feel the pain of loosing my good friends-yes they were good, even if I only knew them for the shortest amount of time- and most of all I never realized what it would do to you. For the past three years, I have thought about my dear friends constantly…but I never got it. Not until now."   
  
"Farren, Farren, that's not the point! I love you still…and I want to get to know you again. Please…just try. Please come back with me?" At some point in time he had sunk to the soil in front of the bench. Down on one knee and still grasping her hand, he looked up at her with begging eyes. She seemed to relent.  
  
"But Remus…I can't leave Anya," she protested, albeit feebly. "I'll-I'll make you a deal. You spend some time with me. We'll get to know each other again; you can camp out in the living room. And next Saturday, we'll talk about it then, okay? I really think I loved you Remus, but we were different then, and we were children. If it doesn't work out…I think I'll always love you as my childhood crush and my greatest friend." Remus rose from the ground. It was not exactly what he had been hoping for, but it was better than he flat out refusal. He smiled at her and nodded.   
  
"Agreed," he said. She smiled.   
  
"Let's go get some lunch. We can stop in a Denny's- You look starved! And as soon as we're done, you can get your stuff from wherever you're staying, and come to my house." Remus smiled wider.   
  
"Let's do that," he said. Holding out his arm in a mock-gentleman manner, Remus and Farren left.   
  
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"You have got to be kidding me? NO! There's no way!" Farren was laughing as she protested feebly. "How many Alberts did you meet yesterday?"  
  
"Quite a few!" Remus answered with a laugh. "Come one, this is my hotel room. I'll grab my stuff and pay, won't take but a minute."  
  
"I don't mind, really," Farren told him. Remus smiled and held the hotel door open for her, letting her walk into the cool shade first.   
  
"Ah, man…I knew it was a girl!" It was the guy at the desk counter. Remus laughed.   
  
"I've come to check out," he told him.   
  
"You only stayed a night and all ready paid for it bro- just get your stuff out of the room quick. Normally I'd have to make you pay another day since checkout time is at 10:00...but we aren't busy. And I can see that you were-ahem-otherwise occupied." Remus smiled. Farren took his hand and he led her to the room, quickly tossing his clothes back in the suitcase with a blush.   
  
"I was in a hurry to see you last night," he muttered. Farren smiled, looking flattered.   
  
"Oh my gosh! You still have this stuff?" She asked looking at some of the clothes. "These have got to be retro by now!"   
  
"Not so, not so!" Remus protested. "I saw plenty of people wearing similar things!"   
  
"That's 'cause things like sweaters and t-shirts don't go out of style. It's just that not many people can honestly say that their clothes were made in 2000...ish and also saw time in the 80's." Farren was smiling. Remus pushed his things back in the case and did a quick evaluation of the room. Convinced he had got everything, he left, Farren following him. Soon they were on the road again in his rented car, Farren teasing him about how he hadn't gotten all that much better at driving. Remus just snorted and turned down her street, pulling in at the house.   
  
"I'm calling the gas station. Anya's got to quit going behind my back to get jobs. It's just not right. We have enough saved in the account to last until you-maybe me-leave, then, we'll see what happens." Remus nodded.   
  
Farren grabbed a phone and showed him the living room. He put his stuff down and sat on the couch, listening as Farren spoke on the phone.   
  
"This is her guardian, yes. I want you to send her home! I know she's not off work yet, and I don't care if you fire her. Send her home!" Farren paced through the room and rolled her eyes at Remus. "Before she leaves, let me speak to her…yes…thank you. Anya?" Farren went on. Remus smiled and began examining appliances. Farren finally hung up the phone. "Oh that girl!" She said, but Remus knew she was only worried about Anya working and not at Anya herself. Remus used the shower, knowing he still smelled like a bar, and changed into clean clothes, before coming back in to sit with a quiet Farren. They sat in silence for a few moments, Farren frowning and Remus trying to look politely interested. After a while, the front door flew open and Anya came pounding into the house, puffing as if she had ran the whole way. She blushed a deep red when she saw Remus.   
  
"We have-company, Farren?" She asked in a horrified voice. Remus smiled and looked away.   
  
"You would know that if you weren't working during the day," Farren told her angrily.   
  
"I'm sorry, I just wanted some money of my own, I- why aren't you at work?" Anya said suddenly.   
  
"I…quit," Farren said, suddenly looking very young.   
  
"Farren! You know we need that money," she accused.   
  
"Yes, I do," Farren replied drawing herself up to her tallest height. "And I also know that I should not have to suffer another day with that-that man! You know how he is," Farren sounded deathly.   
  
"Y-yes," Anya replied. "You're right. But-but what will we live on?"   
  
"The account that I've been putting my paycheck into," Farren replied, still sounding sharp. "You know I've been saving 20% and putting into a living fund."  
  
"Now why don't you go clean up and then come meet Remus, okay?" Anya nodded and walked from the room, but seconds later she had stuck her head back in.   
  
"I know you! You're the one that asked me where the orphanage was!" Remus smiled and nodded while Farren gave them odd looks. Anya then left.   
  
"Sooo," Remus said uncomfortably. "What's new with you these days?" He said, trying for a conversation.   
  
"Nothing!" She said with a laugh. "I mean, I know I've said I'm different, but there's not all that much that I've done in the last eight years. I go to college during the summer…I'm studying to be an author!" She looked excited. The shower abruptly stopped running.   
  
"Any…boyfriends?" Remus said, trying to sound casual. Farren glanced at him sharply and quickly looked away, shaking her head to show the negative. '  
  
"You?" She asked in the same tone. He snorted.   
  
"The last time anyone tried to set me up, I made sure to rip his nasty little dog nose apart the next full moon," Remus said viciously. Farren laughed, but looked away. They were both tense.   
  
"Farren?" He turned to her suddenly, at the same time that she jerked around, saying, "Remus?"   
  
"Ow," they gasped in unison as they hit heads. "Yes?" They asked the other, their timing synchronized. "We have got to stop doing that!" Again, it was both of them. Remus laughed, Farren did as well. They were very close…very, very close. Remus could see the golden and blue flecks in her eyes.   
  
He wasn't sure who made the first move, but the next thing he knew, their mouths were touching in ecstasy. He moved his hands so that they were wrapped around her; she wove hers around his neck. The kiss was needy and expectant, but Remus found he loved it anyway. They had never before kissed quit like this.   
  
"Farren?" Anya's voice was shocked and gleeful.   
  
"Anya," Farren gasped. "I-um-"  
  
"I knew it! I knew you were him!" Anya was pointing at Remus. He knew he was blushing a deep red, and with the room suddenly focused on him, he hastened to straiten out his clothes and sit up straighter.   
  
"What are you rambling about?" Farren asked, still sounding embarrassed.   
  
"I knew he was that guy, the one you met along time ago, I was like…six or something. You came back all sad that he'd moved and showed me his picture, remember?" I knew you looked familiar!"  
  
Farren blushed. "Don't point Anya…it's rude," was all she said. Anya put her finger down.   
  
"Um…" Remus mumbled. "Yes?"   
  
"Yes," Farren repeated him. "He is. And yes Remus is back. And I hope you will refrain from telling him embarrassing stories," she said, still blushing slightly.   
  
"There was this one time," Anya immediately started in. "When I was eleven, and I found this book and I couldn't really understand it, so I brought it to one of the older boys who'd just arrived at the home, and-" Farren leapt up and placed her hand over Anya's mouth.   
  
"Remus doesn't want to hear that story," She said quickly. "You'll embarrass yourself." Anya rolled her eyes, but nodded.  
  
"Well there was this other time, when Jimmy Alvert's-that's this kid-came to The Home and…"   
  
Later that night, Remus lounged on the couch, exhausted just from listening to Anya's wild experiences. Farren had cooked them a dinner that was much better than the one's Remus was used to eating and throughout the dinner Anya had made many carefully snuck in remarks about his and Farren's relationship.  
  
"I always wanted an older brother…brother-in-law works too," she had said. Remus was sure he was permanently blushing.  
  
The couch was comfortably warm and cushiony and the blue blankets Farren had left him were pleasantly warm. He rolled to his stomach, letting the heat rock him into sleep.   
  
"Remus?" A voice broke through his drowsiness.   
  
"Uhh," he replied, turning on his back to see Farren, dressed in a sweeping black nightgown, her long hair falling in a plait down her back. He quickly sat up.   
  
"Did I wake you," Farren asked worriedly.   
  
"No, no," he quickly lied.   
  
"I did, I'm sorry," she said in the same, overly polite manner. "I just wanted to make sure you have everything you need, and that you were comfortable, and-well I know my house isn't anything spectacular, so I wanted to make sure-"  
  
"Farren," Remus said, chuckling slightly as he climbed from the blankets. " I love it here. It's perfect. Absolutely wonderful! Please, don't worry." He came to stand in front of her, towering over her slightly. "I'm fine," he reassured her. She smiled at him, still looking uncertain.   
  
"Remus, I…I know I said I would think about it. But I also know that it's going to be rather odd for me to just…go back with you…I mean, we aren't even-" she stopped, looking embarrassed.   
  
"Farren," he said to her, his stomach wiggling uncertainly. "Would you like to…to be my girlfriend? I mean, so it won't be so odd if you do come, and we could even bring Anya, she seems like a good kid, and…well?" It was ridiculous, he thought, that he should be acting like a fifteen-year-old again, with his nervous stomach and his sweating palms. He quickly wiped them on his pants. Unbeknownst to either of the two, someone crept up to the door and peered in.   
  
Farren blushed, but looked happy.   
  
"I'd love to," she said. Remus laughed hoarsely.  
  
"Really?" He knew he sounded very happy.  
  
"Really, really!" Farren looked pleasantly flushed. Remus flung his arms around her, kissing her furiously. Her hands moved over him seductively as the two kissed like they had never before got to.   
  
"Anya?"  
  
"In bed."  
  
"Good," he mumbled.  
  
Outside the door, Anya Wellings walked silently away with a small blush creeping on her cheeks, an even bigger grin spreading across her devious face.   
  
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Two days later, both Farren and Remus were still acting like a honeymoon couple, and -as much as Anya loved Farren finally being with someone-she was thoroughly fed up with it. Remus knew this, and yet he couldn't quit force himself to stop swinging Farren into his arms whenever she passed, though he refrained from calling her baby-names. He knew they were almost too happy, but he once again felt like the sixteen-year-old he had been when he had first met her. He tried to act at least slightly normal, and found himself really liking Anya as well. She had a determined personality, and yet was still mischievous, young, and active. He often played cards with her and taught her to play chess (he was rather appalled that she didn't know).   
  
But even as he got to know Anya better and better, he also began to understand the new, older Farren. She hadn't yet told him the whole story about her getting raped, and Remus had not asked, for obvious reasons. He loved her, he thought, even more than he had before because of her new adult type personality.   
  
The evening was dawning and Remus felt slightly useless. Farren was going over their money and trying to figure out exactly how much they could spend a day and on what. Anya was determinedly studying her driver's education manual, as she had recently got her learners permit. And Remus was just sitting around, peering out the window, not wanting to disturb either of them.   
  
"Remus," Anya said to him. He looked up. "Will you tell Farren I went out to look at the car…under the hood and stuff?"  
  
He nodded. "Sure, I'll tell her as soon as she gets out. I wouldn't want to bother her now. If it gets late and you aren't back soon, I'm going to come out and get you, all right?" Anya nodded and took her book with her. He thought he heard the car starting up and couldn't imagine what Anya could be doing that required a started car, but soon decided that he had heard another car leaving. Relaxing in his chair, he watched Farren's closed door, and the minute hands of the clock as the inches slowly forward. Soon, it had been fifteen minutes. Remus wondered why Anya wasn't in yet and quickly opened the door to check. The only vehicle in the driveway was the old Saturn he had rented. Feeling panicked, he rushed back inside, running into Farren.   
  
"There you are! I finished!" She told him.   
  
"That's great, just great, but Farren? Um-Anya's gone." Farren stared at him.  
  
"What do you mean?" She asked, opening the door to see the same empty drive that he had.   
  
"She said she was going to go look at the car parts. And now she's gone! I'm sorry, I didn't realize. I should have gone with her-"  
  
"It's fine," Farren snapped, and slammed the door closed. "We'll wait for her, right here. So that when she comes home, I'll be ready to give her a piece of my mind.   
  
But Anya never came home.   
  
At about nine o'clock, a sobbing Mr. Dugs called to tell them that a drunk driver had hit Anya. She was in critical condition and at a hospital in Austin. Farren was sobbing as Remus drove them over.   
  
They quickly usurer Farren in to see her, saying that she had asked for her, weak as it was. They would have made Remus stay out, he knew, if Farren hadn't been gripping his arm so tightly that they couldn't be separated.   
  
"Anya," Farren gasped in shock. "My baby sister Anya, please wake up…can you hear me?" Farren let a fear of her tears fall onto Anya's still cheek. Anya struggled to open her eyes.   
  
"Farren?" She whispered hoarsely. "Remus? Is that you?"  
  
"Yeah, An, it's us," Farren whispered. "What were you thinking about?"  
  
"The open road and the wind in my hair," Anya said seriously. Farren snorted through her tears and Anya worked up a smile. "Farren, I got something to say, so listen close." Anya said.  
  
"You were the," she paused to groan. "The only sister I ever had. And you were the best one too. I want you to be happy and do your own thing…you can't take care of me forever." Farren sniffed  
  
"She thinks she's going to die. That's why she's saying this to me, because she wants me to know before she d-dies," she was sobbing now.   
  
"Remus?" Anya weakly added. "You're a great brother-type person. Treat my big sister right, k?" Remus smiled through his own tears and nodded.   
  
"Every night in my dreams," Farren shakily sang. She had a beautiful voice. "I see you, I hear you,"  
  
"That is how I know you go on," Anya joined in, albeit weakly. "It's our song," she told Remus softly "It's from a movie. You wouldn't have seen it though…because you're not like us, are you?" Remus didn't even have time to express his astonishment that she knew, because her eyes were closing softly.   
  
"Sing it to me, Farren," she whispered, and Farren did. Anya smiled  
  
"Take it," Anya said, giving something to Farren. "Remember me by it. Farren took it and looked at it in her cupped hands tears streaming down her cheeks.   
  
"I love you," Farren whispered. "I will always love you."  
  
"And I you," Anya whispered, before going entirely still, a machine next to her going haywire. Her funeral was set for Saturday, the day Remus was supposed to talk to Farren about leaving once again. He had a feeling that she wouldn't go.   
  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
"We are gathered here today to mourn the death of Anya Wellings, a woman in every sense of the word, though she was only fourteen. Anya had no true home…she lived at an orphanage. But she had a family, for she loved Farren Alma as a sister and they spent hours together. She worked hard for what she wanted, embraced the moment-whatever it happened to be- and loved with a true and pure heart. She was born on January 1st, 1997, but as of Thursday June 11th, 2011, Anya Wellings will forever live on in the afterlife of a Christian." The pastor bowed his head in silent mourning.   
  
Later, Remus couldn't remember much, except that all three of the Dugs' and Farren spoke, and that many teenagers Anya's age came to the viewing. That night, Farren ate nothing, though Remus cooked. She stared blankly out a window, though Remus knew she saw nothing. She was in, he thought, a type of shock.   
  
"Remus," she finally gasped, crying for the first time since Friday. He gathered her in his arms and soothingly rubbed her back, whispering nonsense in her ear.   
  
"She was the only constant in my life. She was always there for me somehow. When I was raped, she was too young to understand, but she still she comforted me. When she was old enough, I told her." Farren gulped. "There is no one now who really knows. I want…I want to tell you," she looked so lost! Remus grabbed her hand.   
  
"Then tell me," he said soothingly. "Do whatever will ease your pain." Farren wiped her eyes on his shirt.   
  
"I was only seventeen, Remus. You had left not even a year before, and only four days after you left, I returned to Texas, per my request. You know how Spencer was. Anyway, they let me stay for a remarkably long time, but of course, they eventually found a foster home once again. This one had two boys, ages twenty and eighteen, and a father, who was just like his boys…perverted. I'm still not sure which one it…it was." Remus felt like someone had delivered a physical blow to his head.   
  
"How could you…not know?" He asked, anguished. He pulled her closer as she began to shake.   
  
"They were always making passes at me, coming into my bedroom at night…it was dark and I couldn't see his face. They all looked remarkably alike, anyway." Remus couldn't believe what he was hearing.   
  
"I'm so sorry," he held her close and soon, they were sound asleep, curled around each other in the armchair.  
  
The next morning, Remus awake to the soft song of birds chirping outside the window. He was feeling decided uncomfortable…cramped and heavier than usual. Looking down, he realized that this might be because he slept in a chair with Farren draped across him. Yes, that definitely could have something to do with it. Farren shifted as well, squinting her eyes at him. She rubbed the fiercely and nearly fell off of his lap. With an amused smile, he pulled her closer to him. They sat in silence.   
  
"I never decided," Farren said suddenly, shattering the quit calm. Remus pretended not to know what she meant.   
  
"Huh?"   
  
She wasn't fooled. "I want to go with you," she said.  
  
"You do?" Remus was, to say the least, shocked.  
  
"Yes,"  
  
"But…I thought after everything that happened, you'd want to stay here. I didn't think you'd want to see much of anyone, let alone move, change time periods, and live continuously with someone you haven't seen in years, except for the past week, which hasn't been the best."  
  
"Uh-uh," Farren shook her head, looking like a child in his lap. "I want to go with you. I love you…I really do," Remus was delighted.   
  
"That's great!" He could barely contain himself. "I wanted you to come so bad, but I thought for sure-"   
  
"I want to come, Remus. I want to live with you." Remus smiled.   
  
"When shall we leave?" He asked her.   
  
"Now," she whispered. Remus chuckled.   
  
"What about your stuff?" Farren snorted.   
  
"I packed it al ready."  
  
"What?" Remus was confused.   
  
"The night you came. I know I said I hadn't decided, but I figured Anya could come with us, you even said she could later. I just packed then. I don't have much I'll need. Can we shrink my truck or something?"   
  
Remus looked thoughtful. Carefully dislodging Farren, he went to her room, which did look very bare. Examining her trunk, he shrunk it so that it was smaller the pocket size. He then did the same with his case.   
  
"Now?" He asked. "What about selling your house, paying your bills…all that stuff?"   
  
"The house is rented. People will think I left because of Anya, which, in a way, I have. They'll sell my stuff and take the house back. We can get all my money from the bank. There's really nothing else that needs taken care of…though there's something I want to get." Farren left the room and entered Anya's, which she hadn't done since the night of the accident. Careful not to disturb anything, she searched through the room until she finally found two things; a black leather bible with Anya's name engraved on it and a gold necklace, one Remus had never seen off of Anya. It was pure gold and simple, with only an intricate rose on the end to serve as a charm.   
  
"I thought she was buried in it?" He asked, confuse. Anya had always worn it.   
  
"No," Farren sighed. "She gave it to me in the hospital, remember?" Remus did.   
  
"Please, let's go," Farren said. "I can't stand it any longer." Taking his hand, she led him from the house, which looked lonely and bare. They even left the car, walking to the bank to withdraw her money. Remus led he to a back road and picked up a pop can.   
  
"I shouldn't be doing this," he told her, trying to convince himself as well. "I really shouldn't be doing this. But I don't live in America…or this time…and I'm leaving…I really shouldn't be doing this…" Farren snorted and hit him over the back of the head teasingly.   
  
"Do it, all ready!" She said. Remus grinned.   
  
"You know how to use a portkey? All you have to do is touch it-"  
  
"I know, I know!" Farren seemed to want to get out of there quickly. Remus smiled at her reassuringly and, with her touching it, he charmed the can to be a portkey and the two of the sped off the National Time and Space Travelling Agency of America. Once there, they went through another inspection and got the Anteeo Ambulo fixed so that it would take them to both Remus's time and Dumbledore's office. Then, Remus sat down with Farren to talk to her.   
  
"This will be frightening," he said solemnly. "And painful. It was the most horrid thing I ever had to go through, though it did bring me to you. It won't leave you innocent." He warned.   
  
"Remus," she said seriously. "I lost that a long time ago."  
  
Remus admired her to no ends. She smiled at him and they both touched the operation, Remus going through the horror again, Farren for the first time. It was not so bad, Remus reflected, when you were with someone you loved.   
  
They arrived in Dumbledore's office. He was not there, though Remus worried not. Farren sat down in a chair, looking horror struck and windblown. But then…  
  
"It could have been worse," she said hoarsely.   
  
"You are coping so well," he whispered, embracing her.   
  
"I am like the phoenix," she said quietly. "I rise anew from my own ashes." Remus could not have agreed more. With one high beautiful note, Fawkes the Phoenix flew to Farren, crying healing tears, though Remus did not know what he was healing. He thought that he was perhaps healing Farren's spirit. 


	5. Chapter 4 Relearning to Live

Thanks to reviewers. Unlike most people, I still don't have the ability to italicise, so look for /these/.   
  
NOTE- this chapter (and probably the next one) will be moving really fast cause I'm sick of writing it Farren. So expect great rushes! And then I have a sequel planned and I'll be done with the Farren trilogy! YEAH!   
  
Chapter 4; relearning to live  
  
The door that led into Dumbledore's office creaked open slowly, and the aged Headmaster himself walked in. His all knowing blue eyes took in the many emotions in the room and his wizened countenance lit up.  
  
"Remus, my boy," he said happily. "Back so soon?" Remus nodded and Dumbledore turned his soft eyes onto the woman who was stroking Fawkes absently and staring at Dumbledore as though she had never seen anything quit like him (which, Remus reminded himself, was entirely possible). She gently removed her hands from Fawkes-who flew to perch on Dumbledore's shoulder- and stuck out one of her pale, trembling hands to him. He took it in both of his and shook it elegantly.   
  
"And you must be the esteemed Farren Alma," Dumbledore said quietly. There was a force in the air so thick that Remus felt that he could surely run a butter knife through it. Farren and Dumbledore had locked eyes and seemed not to be moving, as if they were caught in a staring battle. Remus looked back and forth between the two uncertainly.   
  
"Uh…I'm just gonna take the trunks down to the front and let you two talk, uh…. Yeah," Remus muttered. Neither looked at him. Their insistent staring was starting to frighten him. "Uh, yeah, so I'll come back up and meet you. Uh huh…" With that, he grabbed the shrunken luggage and backed out of the room slowly, his eyes dancing back and forth between the two of him. As he closed the door behind him, he heard Farren say clearly, 'Sir, I feel as if I all ready know you. There is something of dire importance that I must tell you.' Remus wanted to stay and listen, and his Marauder side was urging him on, but he knew it would be dishonest. He walked away dejectedly.  
  
Almost to the entrance hall, he encountered Professor McGonagall, who flashed him a wide and rare grin.   
  
"Albus thought you had arrived back," she said happily, taking the luggage from him and walking with him. "How was your trip?"  
  
"Well, aside from the fact that time travelling is the most horrible experience I have ever been through, that I met numerous rude people, all who seemed to be named some variation of Albert, that I thought Farren was dating someone, got more drunk than ever before, and suffered through the death of a /child/…yes it was lovely." Remus said wryly.   
  
"Really, it was that bad?" McGonagall seemed generally worried.   
  
"Not really, I had a nice time despite…though I will certainly miss Anya," Remus said sadly.   
  
McGonagall frowned and looked at him with worry. "Would you like to tell me about it?" She asked him nicely. He smiled and nodded.   
  
"I think I'd like that," he said and began to tell her all about the trip, starting with Rosmerta and her gossip. By the time he was to the funeral she was in tears, and by the time he had gotten to the scene in Dumbledore's office, she was looking quit surprised.  
  
"Well, I'll be," she said. "Old Albus has done some pretty odd things before, but this just beats all. What could she have to tell him? She's only just met him!"  
  
"Farren," Remus said. "Is not normal. I wouldn't be surprised if she did know him from before." McGonagall snorted inelegantly.  
  
As the two of them continued up the hallway, Remus saw Farren's long auburn hair gleaming in the torchlight.   
  
"Remus," she greeted him. "Sorry that took so long. I was wondering where you'd got to. And you must be Minerva McGonagall," she said, reaching out a hand to McGonagall to shake.   
  
"Please, Minerva will suffice. Remus has told me much about you. I see he's mentioned me to you as well," McGonagall answered pleasantly.   
  
"Actually, I don't think I have," Remus said uncertainly. There was an awkward silence and the group looked at each other uncertainly.   
  
"Well, um…let's get home, shall we?" Remus said suddenly, and that's exactly what they did. Farren was charmed by the home, though she seemed to think it needed decorated more. Grinning larger than ever, the new family settled into their home.  
  
A few weeks later, new neighbours moved in beside them. Farren was outside the house, trying to prompt a garden to grow, when she was startled furiously by the sudden appearance of two people and a horde of luggage. She shrieked and then blushed furiously as Remus and the people all stared at her in surprise. Remus patted her on the shoulder consolingly.   
  
"You really need to get used to that stuff," he said as Farren placed a trembling hand over her heart. The group next door had lost interest in them and left, but Farren peered over at the house curiously anyway.   
  
"It seemed like that house was going to be empty forever," she said. "I'm glad we've finally got some neighbours. The woman looked about my age."  
  
As it turned out, they were only a few years older than Remus and Farren. Their names were Allyson and Gregory Grayson and they were as different as could be. It was a wonder they got along.   
  
Allyson Grayson was pale skinned, with long black hair that fell around her in layers, making her high cheek bones more prominent looking than before. Her eyes were big and liquid-y black, with shadows surrounding them. She was not unattractive, per say, but looked paranoid and jumpy, barely talking when not spoken directly to and always on guard.   
  
Gregory Grayson, on the other hand, was tall and broad, built like a beater. His sun-bleached hair was short and bristly, while wide dull blue eyes were set against his tan skin. He was pushy and obnoxious, very loud, and very boisterous, with a habit of bragging loudly, as Farren and Remus found out   
  
They went to go meet the new neighbours later that week, Farren trying her hardest to seem perfectly normal, to make up for her jumpiness earlier. Gregory opened the door with a grumble, though his face split into an almost malicious grin at the sight of them.   
  
"'Ell, if it isn't the jumpy 'amily 'Om next door," he said with a laugh, before gesturing them in. Remus frowned slightly.   
  
"Though," the man continued, eyes sweeping over Farren. "Jumpy can be…a good thing…Gregory Grayson, 'iss." Remus frowned significantly.  
  
Farren placed a hand on his arm warningly. Their host frowned, but a rustle from the corner averted his attention. In the shadows of the stairwell, barely seen, stood the woman who had been with him the day before hurt showing plainly on her face.   
  
"Allyson!" Roared her husband. "Get o'er here and great our guests, 'ill ya?" The woman shuffled to the door, her bony body stiff with apprehension. She stuck one pale and trembling hand towards Farren.   
  
"Allyson Grayson," she said in a voice barely above a whisper. "You must be the neighbours. And this must be your husband." Remus shook her hand quickly.   
  
"Boyfriend…actually," he quickly corrected her. She blushed and shrunk back from him, muttering her apologies. Remus shared a glance with Farren, whose cheeks were rather red, though she too was staring at Allyson oddly. Gregory led them to the living room, which was all ready unpacked and impeccable, though Gregory ran a finger disdainfully over a tabletop as though expecting dust to appear on his finger.   
  
"Allyson, go 'inish dinner, our guests will want some. I'm sure this 'iss will help ya," Farren opened her mouth to decline, but Allyson shuffled meekly to the kitchen and, with a calculating glance, Farren followed her without complain.   
  
"'Omen," Gregory said disdainfully, flopping onto the divan. "Ya got to take a 'irm hand with 'em sometimes, they're always trying to outstand their place, ya know it?" Remus frowned uncertainly.   
  
"I have always thought that woman and men shared 'places,'" he said in a carefully light voice. Gregory snorted.   
  
"Ah, you're one of those types, eh? You'll see, one of these days."   
  
"Well," Remus said, voice forcefully light. "My father detested me and left our family shortly after my fifth birthday. My mother did all the cooking, working, raising, and handymen stuff, as well as playing quidditch with the best of us kids." Gregory pointedly ignored that.   
  
"Your 'ather left, eh? Well, I always thought men should be kept 'ostly separated from 'amily life, if ya know what I 'ean. And not to be rude or nothing, but you're not exactly the 'ost robust of 'em, ya know? /I/ 'ould have left too!" Gregory had a long and solitary laugh at Remus's extent. Remus forced another smile, pushing back thoughts that generally ran along the lines of, 'wouldn't you like to see how manly I can be during full moons?'   
  
"Dinner is ready," I voice said from the doorway, and Remus looked up to see Farren, frown on her face. Remus sincerely hoped that she hadn't heard what Gregory had said, for he thought all his strained politeness might go to waste. Sure enough, she was glaring at Gregory with so much contempt it was unthinkable that he had not yet noticed, though he had managed to.   
  
Dinner that evening was an odd affair, Remus thought. There was a definite tension in the air between their host and hostess, as though she was trying her hardest to be perfect and he was trying his hardest to be indifferent. He said nothing about the fancy china, the crystal wine glasses, or in fact, the wine itself, as though it was a usual event. Farren seemed unusually quiet and pensive; she spoke little and only when asked a direct question. And Remus was boiling with suppressed anger though he did his best to make small talk.   
  
The minute they were safely back in their home, Remus exploding. Yelling obscenities, he rammed a pillow into the wall fiercely, hands smarting. He felt two slender, cold hands place them self on his bare shoulders. Farren lent her head on his bareback and hummed soothingly. Remus eventually slumped against the wall, calm.   
  
"It doesn't matter," she said softly. "He's a prick, a bigot, a scoundrel who has no idea what he was talking about. Only someone with little to no compassion could all as much mock someone's family situation." Of course, Farren would have heard him, and known exactly what Remus was referring too.   
  
Though they spoke of it little, Farren knew of his past. How his father had walked out on them due to Remus's lycanthropy, how his mother had been left to act the part of both parents. She would have, of course, known how upset he was about the whole evening in general. He breathed deeply; she was right, he shouldn't let the man's comments bother him.   
  
"Remus," she said softly, later that night, as they lay cuddled together on the bed, reading some classic novel. "I'm worried."   
  
Remus sat up to look at her.   
  
"About what?" He asked with a small frown.   
  
"Allyson," she said honestly, with a small sigh. Remus frowned, thinking back to the woman. "She's a little shy and jumpy-though who wouldn't be, living with a person like him?"  
"I suppose you're right. My imagination is running away with me again," Farren agreed, and she settled back against him as he read aloud, though her eyes continually drifted across the room. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she noticed not when Remus stopped reading to look at her, nor did she stir when he turned off the lights and tucked the blankets around her, resolving that he could sleep in her room if she was so out of it that she didn't notice she was in his.  
  
The next morning, Remus wandered into the kitchen to find Farren sitting at the table, staring pensively out the window. He groaned and wondered what- if anything in particular- was bothering her. She looked up.   
  
"Morning Remus," she said cheerily, sounding more normal than the night before. "I didn't mean to fall asleep in your room."   
  
"I don't mind," Remus said quickly, his cheeks colouring when he realized what he'd just said. Farren pointedly ignored that. Remus turned and quickly gathered some pancake mix and began to fix it. Five minutes in, he had burned them…again. Farren laughed and came to turn the burner down, scrapping burnt remains off the pan and starting over.   
  
"We've a letter," she said offhandedly. Remus started.   
  
"We do?"  
  
"We do," she confirmed. "It's over there, on the countertop. I figured it was for you about a job or something, so I didn't touch it." Remus bounded to the countertop eagerly…if only he wasn't turned down again!   
  
"I-I-it's," he stuttered upon seeing the address.   
  
"What is it?" Farren asked, coming up behind him.   
  
"I dunno…but it's for you," Remus said dryly, excitement gone.   
  
"Me?" Farren asked incredulously. "From who?"  
  
"Dumbledore," Remus said, a spark of curiosity in his eyes. Farren gave a suppressed squeal and grabbed it from him, ripping it open quickly.  
  
'"Dear Miss Alma,'" she read excitably.   
  
'"Due to your unusual past, the staff of Hogwarts has agreed to teach you in the art of magic. Starting next Monday, we would appreciate it if you would come and live at Hogwarts formally; at least, for the time being. You will be receiving lessons from one Severus Snape, Mandragora Sprout, Filius Flitwick, Holanda Hooch, and Minerva McGonagall, as well as myself, in the subjects potions, Herbology, charms, flying, transfiguration, and defense against the dark arts. Bring whatever you like for your new chambers and please buy a wand before you come. A train will be waiting on Platform nine and three-quarters for you at eleven o'clock. '"   
  
'"Remus-"' here she paused and looked at him, though he nodded for her to go on. '"Remus, as I am sure you are wondering, you are most welcome to come to Hogwarts as well, however, I must warn you that you may spend your days doing nothing but browsing books, as Farren shall be very busy. I eagerly await you letter back."'  
  
'-Albus"' Farren's eyes were glowing in excitement.   
  
"I-" Remus started. "I'm not going to be able to go with you." Farren looked at him, surprise evident on her face.   
  
"Why?" She asked bluntly, hurt clearly showing in her eyes.   
  
"Someone's going to need to stay at work to be able to pay for the house," he said sensibly. "But you need to go. It'll be good for you and you look excited. I promise, I'll write you often." Farren nodded, uncertain still, but agreeing none-the-less.   
  
"Perhaps we should go to Diagon Alley and get your things," Remus suggested lightly, trying to forget about how much he would miss her. Farren's eyes lit up again.   
  
"I'd love too! And we can go to Ollivanders and Eyelope's Owl Emporium, and- what?" She asked, seeing his strange look.   
  
"It's uncanny how you know so many things without ever being told…I don't suppose you could give me a clue as to how?" Farren smiled mysteriously, and said nothing.   
  
"I can tell you one thing…" She said thoughtfully. "You might want to open your mind a bit as to the matter of Sirius Black…try and see things that aren't obvious…second guessing yourself isn't always bad…" Remus stared at her.   
  
"I will never, in all of my days, understand you," he said, and with a laugh, grabbed her arm and disapparated into Diagon alley. Without a word other than her inane giggling, she grabbed his arm and pulled him down the street, dodging school kids and laughing like one herself. Suddenly, she stopped, causing Remus to run strait into her and knock both of them to the ground.   
  
"Ey, get a room!" A rowdy teenager yelled as he passed them, and Farren, with a well-situated foot, tripped him right into a pretty blonde haired girl.   
  
"Take your own advice!" She said with a mad giggle, and Remus was struck with the sudden thought that they must look like seventh years, giggling and sprawled on the ground like this. The teenager had forgot about her, as he was staring, quit enraptured, at the girl's…eh, face. Remus burst into laughter, and Farren, ignoring him, scrambled to her feet and over to a family of red haired people.   
  
"Excuse me?" She asked. "Do I know you?" The oldest woman of the lot looked at her.   
  
"I doubt it, dear, you look quit a bit younger than me!" she said. Remus suddenly realized whom she was talking to. Molly and Arthur Weasley and their children (all nine of them.) She looked quit at home with her auburn hair.   
  
"Of course, I'm sorry, you just look very familiar." Farren said, looking as if she knew darn well that she'd never /met/ them before. "My name's Farren Alma by the way…you wouldn't happen to be part of the esteemed Weasley family, would you?" (A/N hee hee, I had to bring the twins in!)   
  
"You've heard of us, have you?" Arthur asked her, surprise evident on his face. "It's not everyday you meet someone who refers to you as esteemed!"   
  
"Ah, yes, I have. Arthur and-Molly, is it not?" Farren said, pleasantries brimming. The couple laughed in delight and nodded.   
  
"And this is Remus Lupin," Farren said, gesturing behind her carelessly. Remus blushed and shook their hands. "My, you have lovely children," she said smiling at them.   
  
"Ah, yes, they are our life," Molly said happily. "This is Bill, he's thirteen, and Charlie, starting school this year, Percy, he's nine-quit the little book reader, and the twins, Fred and George, seven and rotten as can be. This is Ronald, he'd four, and Ginervra, we call her Ginny, three, my baby."  
  
"Wow, how are you guys- and girl- doing today?" Farren said, bending down to talk to them 'on their level.'  
  
"I-" the rather smart looking one with glasses- Percy-said. "Got a new book today. It's called Dragon's Watch and it's Charlie's old book." he held it out for Farren to inspect, and she did so happily.   
  
"Do you know what kind that one is?" She said, sounding generally interested. Percy told her promptly.   
"And you're Charlie aren't you? You look like the type to like animals, huh?" Charlie nodded quickly.   
  
"We got a rat," he said. "He just came to live with us a couple years ago." A shadow crossed Farren's face. Remus remembered her words from long ago…'Do not trust the rat.' He shook away the feeling of unease quickly.   
  
"Lookit this!" Bill said to Farren, and pushed up his sleeve to reveal a tattoo of a dragon's tooth. His mother looked scandalized.   
  
"William Prescott Weasley, that had better be a fake, so help you Merlin!" She gasped, her wand out and ready to clean it off. Bill looked frightened.   
  
"Uh, I gotta go get, uh my friend, who's over there waiting for me- UH, Tracy! Tracy!" He said, catching up with a girl his age that eyed him strangely, though she didn't seem to mind his presence. Farren discretely handed something to one of the twins.   
  
"I'm so sorry you had to witness that, Farren, Remus. My sons can be a bit of a-hassle, at times." As if to prove her point, her twins suddenly exploded a cart of magically enhanced zucchini. Farren and Remus quickly hurried away before she started shouting, Farren grinning like mad.   
  
"I gave them that fruit bomb," she whispered to Remus. "I knew they'd like it."  
  
Remus stared at her as if she's gone mad. Her grin seemed to confirm it for him. Sighing, he shook his head and walked towards Ollivander's, which looked miraculously empty. Farren ran ahead and skidded into the shop.   
  
"You're certainly…feisty today," he said as he came in, at a more acceptable pace. Farren ignored him and giggled as a tape measure calculated the distance between her nostrils of it's on accord.  
  
"Try this one," a spooky voice spoke from the back, and Mr. Ollivander walked sedately towards them, eyes travelling over Remus.   
  
"Ah, Mr. Lupin. Red cedar and oak, twelve and a forth, pheonix wing feather, was it not? Particularly good at protection spells, if I do recall." Ollivander said reminiscently. Then, snapping back to it, he handed Farren the wand he was holding without further ado.   
  
"Ebony, ten inches, dragon heartstring- well, wave it." Farren was looking at him like he was crazy, but she waved it anyway. A blast of light nearly knocked her off her feet; Remus was quick to catch her.   
  
"Well, that was seems a bit too powerful…let's try another," Ollivander said moving to the back.   
  
"Well, no!" Farren said in a sarcastic whisper. "It's only EBONY after all." She then began giggling insanely. Remus backed away slowly.   
  
"Here we go, here we go. Willow, ten inches, pheonix feather." Farren still didn't look very convinced of his choice, though she waved it. Nothing happened at all.   
  
"Hmm, not quite powerful enough…well, well, well. How about we try…hmm…this one!" Ollivander straitened up, and wand in his hand.   
  
"Black Walnut, not often seen in wands. Eleven inches, hair of a particularly clever unicorn…had her mate nearly gore me after I had taken a few hairs. And beautiful as well…" Farren's eyes were alight, as if she were all ready taken with it. Carefully, she took it in her hand and waved it; a shower of gold sparks fell from the end.   
  
"Oh bravo," Ollivander said, but at that moment another customer came in, and so they were rushed through checkout.   
  
It seemed, Remus thought the next Monday that every moment since they had left Ollivander's was rushed. All ready Farren was standing, enraptured, on the platform, eyes wide and sparkly.   
  
"I'll see you later, Remus," she whispered softly, turning towards him, eyes suddenly glassy with tears. "I'll miss you. And I'll come home to visit as soon as I can, I promise. And lots of letters, okay?" Remus nodded uncomfortably, and suddenly Farren had thrown herself into his arms and was squeezing the air out of him. Uncaringly, he hugged her back just as hard. She pulled away and smiled at him. "I can't believe I get the whole train to myself! Oh, Remus, one last thing. Visit the neighbours, will ya?"   
  
"The neighbour?" Remus asked her disbelievingly. "The rude, obnoxious, big-headed, prick-of-a-person, neighbour?"   
  
"Neighbour/s/," Farren reminded him. "And I like Allyson."  
  
"You're still worried about her, aren't you?" Remus guessed.   
  
"Yes I am," Farren said unconcernedly. "So visit them!" She pulled him into a quick hug and kissed him on the lips, before rushing onto the train, smiling widely.  
  
"Bye," Remus said miserably. He did not want her to go.   
  
"Bye!" She said, all excitement, waving to him from the window. "And don't forget!" The train sped out of sight and Remus, with a heavy heart, disapparated home.  
  
For weeks afterward, Remus went about with a heavy heart. Forced visits to the neighbours, lonely house cleaning, and finally getting a job filled his life, though not nearly satisfying enough. Eventually, he sent a good-sized letter to Farren and eagerly awaited her return.   
  
'Dear Remus,' he read happily.  
  
'Everything had been going fine. I had a nice long chat with the sorting hat while waiting for Dumbledore one day and discovered that I would be fitted to all four houses, interesting as it is, though he eventually decided on Ravenclaw.' She went on for a while, describing her rapid advancement in lessons, saying that 'all ready knowing many things helps immensely,' much to Remus's confusion.   
  
'I would also like to note,' she told him. 'That Severus Snape is not nearly as disagreeable as you would like to believe, though he is still sore at certain people's inability to stop their friends from being bullies, though he says causing you to sweat at night at the thought of your girlfriend taking private lessons with him is revenge enough.' After that, she had drawn a small smiley face.   
  
Remus had been quick to reply.   
  
'Tell Severus,' he had eventually put. 'That if he lays a hand on you I shall personally make an un-planned visit and we'll take a walk…in the moonlight.' (A/N- I adapted this from the movie HP POA) He had then added a smiley face of his own, this one with a sticking out tongue.   
  
'Tisk tisk, Remus,' she had wrote back. 'Possessive much? So how about those neighbours, eh? Notice anything odd?'  
  
'Well,' he wrote back reluctantly. 'I have noticed some things, actually. As much as I hate to admit it, perhaps it isn't just your imagination. I am very rarely allowed to see Allyson, but when I do she is shy, though she seems to want to confide in anyone who'll listen, as if people rarely do. Also, I noticed odd movement and limping, along with a bruise on her arm, which she quickly concealed.'   
  
'I told you something was up,' Farren had written back, rather irritably. 'If she's being abused-' and she had gone on to rant for half a page, definitely in a bad mood, before revealing that Severus had yelled at her rather forcefully when she had told him that she was trying her best and just didn't like potions, and that she was not a student and so he could not put her in detention, despite the fact that she had blown up a cauldron.   
  
Remus had been quick to write back soothingly.   
  
'Farren, it's okay. In fact, I suspect Sn- Severus will be more upset that he angered you than that you blew something up, considering that I have got the feeling from your writing the two of you have become friends. Besides, isn't it rather funny to see him stumble when he realizes that he can't punish you for mistakes?'  
  
'Yes, of course,' she had written back. 'I was just in a bad mood that day. How's Allyson?'   
  
As her letters became more frequent, as did Remus's visits to the Grayson's, she began to take less time explaining how she had been and more time speculating on Allyson's well being. Finally, nearly six months of tortured hours spent missing her, Farren showed up, quite unexpectedly, at the door.   
  
A knock sounded around five thirty as Remus sat down to a solitary dinner of spaghetti, Farren's favourite. (A/N- if anyone remembers I put this in the prequel.) He walked to the door and opened it uncaringly, only to find Farren, a huge smile on her face, standing there, snowflakes falling from the December air into her hair. Farren loved snow.   
  
"Farren!" He said, eyes wide. "I didn't know you were coming home. Did I miss a letter or some-"  
  
"No, I didn't write!" She said cheeks flushed from the wind. "I wanted to surprise you!" She walked inside, set down her bags, and leapt into his arms, mouth against his. He held her tightly.   
  
"I don't want you to go back," he said in a childish voice, holding her tightly around the middle.   
  
"I've got to!" Farren giggled and hugged him. "But I've missed you like crazy. I just took my first year tests!" Remus stared at her.   
  
"Your first year tests…in six months? You've got to be kidding me!"   
  
"Didn't you see the newspaper article?" She said, eyes bright. "I couldn't believe it, I was in the Daily Prophet! I mean, they ran this big prologue thing about my parents and how they left and went back in time and stuff and how I came back and how you came and got me and how now I was learning magic. And then it went on to about how I was taking the first year exams after only five months and two weeks of studying! Isn't it amazing?" Farren was so excited, Remus could barely follow her words, but he swept her into another hug anyway and squeezed her fiercely.   
  
Unfortunately, Farren went back only a few days later. She had passed her exams with flying colors and had told him that she wanted to do better on her second year ones. Her letters became less and less frequent as her workload enlarged, but she made sure to write him once a month, asking how he was, and Allyson, who seemed to become her special project.   
  
On May twenty-ninth, Farren passed her second year exams and choose her next classes, progressing faster than any person in history so far. Farren was delighted, but she was also sick of the school atmosphere, as she told Remus in one of her letters.   
  
'Learning magic is great and all, but seeing you only every couple of months is enough to kill a person. As soon as I can, I'm coming to see you,' she wrote.   
  
And she did. Five months later she had progressed enough to pass third year exams. Admittedly, her results were not as good as the exams previous, but they were still above average, and Farren cared not about them. As soon as they were over, she told her teachers, as well as the newspaper (who had been tracking her progress in amazement) that she was putting her education on hold so that she could 'spend some time at home with the people I love.' Her first night home, she refused to let go of his hand and crawled into bed with him, unashamedly, and snuggled close, refusing to move. Remus couldn't honestly say that he minded.   
  
Farren continued to study, but she did all theory, as she still wasn't allowed to do magic at home, though she was over-age. The ministry maintained that they wanted her to at least have her O.W.L.s, which didn't seem to bother her in the slightest.   
  
Remus notices that Farren was spending a lot of time over at the Grayson's, though he tried not to be jealous. He was glad Farren was making a friend, though she often came home with worried creases on her forehead. But she said she really liked Allyson, that sometimes the way she looked reminded her briefly of an older Anya. Upon hearing this, Remus hugged her swiftly while she fought back tears.   
  
One day, Remus came home from work to find the house empty. Farren usually made a point to be home from next door before he got home, but he didn't want to butt in. He found a note on the kitchen table.   
  
'Remus,' it read. 'If you are reading this, then I need you at Allyson's. I've gone to speak to her about being abused; I want to know if it's the truth, and if so, I'm taking her to the hospital and turning Gregory in, I don't care what she says, how much she fights. One day she'll thank me. But if this note is here, something went wrong, because I left at ten.  
  
Farren'  
  
Scared enough to burst, Remus pounded across the lawn and pulled at the door without bothering to knock. It was locked. He pulled at the door in a fit of anger and heard the lock break. He then crept quickly yet stealthily through the home, until he came to a door, partially open.   
  
Farren was in their, as well as Allyson and Gregory, who had his back to him. Farren spotted him and sent him a frantic look. Her left eye was black and swollen shot, while she seems to be having trouble breathing without hurting herself, making Remus suggest broken ribs. Allyson was in an even worse condition. (A/N- I don't want to make this too vulgar sounding, but I got to do what I got to do.) Her shirt was halfway unbuttoned, as though she had been showing Farren her bruises, which covered her body, along with fresh scratches and blood. Her arm was hanging awkwardly from a badly constructed sling, and blood trickled down her face. Apparently, something in both her and Farren's faces alerted Gregory of his arrival, for he turned with a snort to him.   
  
"Finally!" Gregory said roughly, grabbing Remus and pulling him into the room. "Your wi- extremely /mouthy/ girlfriend over there was trying to convince Allyson that she's being mistreated. You know as well as I do that she's a failure, a clumsy thing, everything she gets she deserves, you've been over here enough. Now, tell that to your little bitch!"   
  
Remus pushed Gregory roughly off him. He stumbled back, looking surprised. "It is not your place to tell me what to do, and if you think I am going to-punish- someone for speaking their mind and trying to help a friend, you are wrong! I strongly agree with Farren, what you are doing is not for the better, it is abuse, and by attacking Farren for trying to protect Allyson, you have broken even more laws, you sexist, big-headed, egotistical, conceited, prick!" Remus exploded, pushing the man roughly into a wall, which dented under his weight. Allyson gave a dry sob and Farren reached up to stroke her hair soothingly as they crouched in the corner.   
  
Gregory gave a roar of rage but didn't advance towards Remus, seeing his anger-induced strength. His eyes darted around the room, to the door that Remus stood in, and back to Remus's face, bravado suddenly forgotten.   
  
"It's not a-abuse," he muttered weakly. "It's due punishment." He looked scared, as if it had suddenly occurred to him that it was abuse. "You believe me don't you? She deserved whatever she got, it was for good…really." Remus growled at him and he fell silent. Remus sent a harmless stunner in his direction and he slumped to the floor.   
  
"Farren," Remus muttered softly and he advanced towards them, suddenly calm. He couldn't believe he had let himself act as he had. Farren was standing up painfully, supporting Allyson as she did so.   
  
"He broke her arm last night," she said, seeing Remus's glance at the crudely made sling. Remus nodded and gathered Allyson in his arms, Farren limping behind them. He lay Allyson on a couch and hugged Farren gently, muttering, "I was so scared," as she gripped him tight as her pain would allow. Finally, Remus left to send an owl to the Ministry of Magic and Saint Mungo's hospital. Merely minutes later, the ministry was there and taking Gregory away, while taking interviews from the girls and Remus.   
  
Saint Mungo's arrived, with magical stretchers and apparated to the hospital. Remus followed the ministry and, nearly an hour later, after a quickly squeezed in trial, Gregory Grayson was on his way to an area of Azkaban unguarded by dementors, for he was a low-guarded prisoner. He was instead stopped by numerous charms and enchantments.   
  
Remus knew there was something he wanted to do, something that couldn't wait. Seeing Farren harmed today had made him realize again how much he loved her. He made a quick trip into Hogsmeade, stopping by Hogwarts to speak to Dumbledore, who of course, all ready knew, before apparated quickly to the hospital.   
  
He was shown to her room, and the healers quickly cleared out. One or two of the younger women had tears in their eyes and were blubbering about beautiful stories and tragic love tales as they walked out. Seeing Remus, they began to giggle through their tears. Ignoring them, Remus walked right in to the love of his life. 


	6. Chapter 5 the beginning otherwise known ...

Really, really, really short chapter folks! And then this story's finished and I can write the sequel, which I'm actually looking forward to!   
  
Chapter 5; the beginning  
  
Remus saw her, sitting up in the bed, and nearly lost his breath. Even with her hair all a mess, she looked beautiful. Her bruises had been healed quickly and she seemed in perfect health.   
  
"Remus!" She said happily. "How's Allyson?" Remus smiled wryly; it was just like Farren to ask about the other person first.   
  
"She'll live. They're getting her a therapist and they've healed her arm and such. It's more mental and emotional problems that we have to worry about now."  
  
"That's horrible!" Farren said, eye's wide. But then she smiled at him and he came forward to hug her.   
  
"I was so frightened," he said, trying to be calm. "I thought- I dunno, I was just so-"  
  
"Shh," she said softly, placing a finger over his lips. He allowed himself to be silenced.   
  
"What happened?" He asked her finally, after minutes of just holding her.   
  
"Well, I went over there at about ten, like you know. And we were talking, and I couldn't figure out how to breech the subject, so we talked a little, and she seemed so trusting, Remus! Like she just wanted someone to listen to her, because she never got that from Gregory."  
  
"So we painted for a little bit, just so we had something to do, ya know. And finally I just stopped and started talking and didn't let her interrupt me, and she just started crying- it was horrible. And then she started sobbing and saying that she deserved everything she got and I tried to convince her that it wasn't true but she wasn't having any of it, and then she told me how he'd broke her arm and started showing me her bruises and I was trying to clean the scratches when he came home-" Farren stopped and gasped slightly, as if reliving it.  
  
"And he threw the door open and it caught her in the stomach and threw her backwards, and he grabbed me and started shouting how it wasn't any of my business…he was drunk, I know it. And- and- well he just shouted for a while and hit her and-" she stopped.   
  
"It's okay, everything's going to get better," he said softly and rocked her. She looked up at him, wiping her eyes.   
  
"I'm being silly, forgive me," she muttered, still rubbing at her eyes.   
  
"No, no, you're not being silly! It was a horrible thing to go through!" Farren smiled, slightly, and slid off the bed so that she was standing in front of him.   
  
"That's why I love you," she said easily, and grinned. Remus smiled to.   
  
"Well, uh, I wanted to-uh- talk to you about that," he said, feeling foolish. Farren froze.   
  
"Yes?" She asked.   
  
"Well, Farren," he stepped away from her, facing the wall, pacing. "I met you and you were so amazing, so wonderful, I just- couldn't resist being your friend. You know the story, we were there to find you, to change the future, but I got attached to you, really attached. Then I found out you all ready knew about me, and that you didn't care! It was amazing; I'd never had a girlfriend before who knew! And then we had to leave and I thought I would just die, and you said how maybe it was a fluke, maybe there was someone who we would actually get to see everyday, and I was just heartbroken. I always knew you'd be here, I kept thinking, 'She's going to wake up one day and think of me, just think of me, and miss me, and then she's going to know she made a mistake…'"  
  
"Oh, I did!" Farren said, interrupting him. "I made a terr-"   
  
"Let me finish," he said breathlessly. "And now that we're back together, I just want to spend the rest of my life with you, just you and me. I guess what I'm trying to say is-" He stopped and turned to face her, taking both of her delicate hands in his own. "Would you marry me?"   
  
Farren gasped. Her face went pale, she stood absolutely still for a second, before leaping into his arms, crying 'Yes, yes, yes,' over and over again. Remus felt tears in his own eyes.   
  
"Here," he said, pulling away. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring box. She reached out breathlessly and pulled it open, never taking her eyes off it. Slowly, she opened it and gasped again.   
  
Inside was a delicate, white gold ring. A beautiful diamond sat nestled in the band, surrounded by two miniscule black pearls. She looked at it, eyes and mouth wide.   
  
"How did you affo- how did you kno- oh Remus!" She slipped it on. It fit perfectly, wonderfully. And Remus loved the way it looked, sitting there on her let hand ring finger- his ring, on her hand…  
  
She leapt into his arms again and gave him a dizzying kiss. Pulling away slightly, she lent her forehead on his.   
  
"Hey Remus," she said softly. "I thought of you." 


End file.
